The Trigger
by ArtemisPhantom
Summary: Danny may never be the same again, so will McFly survive these hard times? Can the rest of the band bring back the boy they all knew and loved? Rated for language and angsty stuff. DannyXDougie.
1. The Accident

**Well, bet you weren't expecting this! XD**

**New fic I've come up with; it's very different to It Started With An Audition, so I'm just telling you now in case you're disappointed.**

**This first chapter is, uhhh, a trial run. If people like it, then I'll carry on. If people don't, then no harm done and I'll write more in the humorous style XD**

**This is emotional. I'm not gonna lie.**

**See what you think then ;)  
**

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"Geroff me you idiot," Danny chuckled into the night as a very drunk Dougie had attempted to kiss him full on the lips, "I don't swing that way!"

"Oh but Dan-Daaaan, he slurred, "just once, go on!"

An equally drunk Danny found this idea more appealing now that he was under the influence, even though he actually would have been very happy do it if he'd had no drink at all in his system. He pretended to think about it, and then said, "Okay then you daft monkey; just once though mind!"

Suddenly, Dougie appeared sober and pulled Danny's leather jacket towards him. "Of course." He said, Danny's nose just centimetres from his own. It was the older boy who closed the gap; and under a streetlight in London, one half of McFly did that which had always been forbidden by the music industry.

The taste of Dougie played on Danny's tongue long after they had pulled apart. He was now feeling relatively sober, and was helping to drag Tom home, who was still very much saturated with alcohol.

"You know what guys?" Tom muttered, giggling stupidly under his breath, "I love you. All of you. And I hope… I hope McFly last forever, you know? 'Cause we deserve to, and we've worked so damn –hic- hard to make this last as long as we can."

Harry kicked a stone on the ground, hands shoved deep in his pockets. He couldn't drink that night as he was taking medication for an illness he had. It wasn't serious, but he was strongly advised not to drink whilst in the healing process as it could have fatal consequences. He sighed heavily. "We know Tom; this is the same speech you give us EVERY TIME you're pissed. Now can you PLEASE walk on your own, because Danny looks really tired?"

Tom straightened instantly. He carried on walking, albeit with a dizzy motion about his steps. Danny smiled at Harry as a way of thanks, and carried on ahead. Then, inspiration struck.

"Eh, Doug! I'll give you a race home… we're not far away now!" Danny shouted back at the boy in question.

He stood for a moment in disbelief, before a determined, beaming smile spread across his face. "Bring it on, bitch."

Danny sprang into action, certain that Dougie would never catch up. However his already low jeans started slipping down, and his run turned into a sort of waddle as he desperately tried to hitch them up. He could hear Dougie approaching from behind, and with a new spurt of energy, dashed round a corner.

Ahead was a road with a crossing, and the traffic lights were red. _Score_, Danny thought. _They won't still be red when Doug tries to cross!_

As Danny thundered closer and closer, the green man began to flash, indicating that the traffic lights were now amber. His feet pounded the tarmac, and he quickly glanced to his left before advancing to the other side. Before he could get there, however, there was a shriek from Dougie.

"DANNY, LOOK OUT"-

Danny spun to his right, in time to see the glare of bright headlights.

The harsh blaring of a horn.

Another cry.

Then, nothing.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Danny rushed back into consciousness with a deep breath as if he'd just been holding it for days, and he had only one thing on his frazzled mind. "Mum, where's my mum?"

A tall Doctor rushed over. _This must be a hospital_, thought Danny. He had jet black hair which was combed back professionally, a long dazzling white lab coat and a clipboard. "I'm afraid she's not here right now," he said in a surprisingly soothing voice, "but she was here yesterday. In fact, I don't think she left your side all day."

The confused boy wiped some sweat from his brow, feeling a bandage that stretched around his skull. "But… then… why isn't she here now?"

"I told her to get some rest; believe me, she needed it. Now, lie back down and I'll go and tell your band mates that you've woken up. They've been worried sick about you." The doctor left with a warm smile, and one phrase stuck in Danny's mind.

_Band mates?_

The door swung back open, and a younger boy flew through the gap. He bounced into the sterile room with the happiness of a six year old and grinned brilliantly at the boy on the bed. "Danny, we were so worried! I watched it happen… and… well; I've seen a therapist so it's all good now. Tom's written TONS of songs and the fans have been going nuts. We literally can't keep them away…"

_Tom… fans… he knows me…_

Dougie stopped. Tom and Harry entered tentatively to find the boy at a loss for words, and looking strangely at Danny. They stayed silent, as Dougie posed a question slowly. "Dan… do you remember what happened?"

The Boltoner grabbed his bed sheet and twisted it between his fingers. He couldn't make eye contact as he knew he was going to break this boy's heart. Whoever he was.

"No, I don't remember."

Looking slightly put off, Dougie said, "Oh, well, don't worry. I can tell you-"

"But I don't remember you either."

The bombshell sent waves of shock through the room, and the white walls seemed to become bigger and expand the emotional gap between the band mates. A rift had formed, and Tom could clearly see it.

He panicked, and sat on the floor. Beginning to hyperventilate, he asked, "so, what… what about me then? And Harry? Do you remember us?"

Danny desperately searched his brain for some sign of recognition; he could see this situation becoming nothing less than disastrous. He stared the panicking blond in the face, and searched the lines of worry for _something_. Anything. "No," he said, almost seeing the words penetrate Tom's heart like a blunt sword. "I don't know you; I don't know anything about you."

Harry placed one hand over his mouth and shut his eyes. Tears welled up in his eyes, which was unusual for him. Danny didn't know any better.

"I-I'm sorry! I want to remember, really I do! You all seem so nice, but I don't… I don't know whether to trust you or not." He said, still trying not to make eye contact with the now silent boys.

It was Dougie who spoke next, though he found it incredibly difficult. "I have a picture. Of us, if you want to see it." It felt like he was talking to a total stranger. There was no way, no way that this man on the bed was Danny. He didn't smile. He didn't laugh. For fucks sake, he didn't even know him any more.

The smile Danny gave was small. "Okay, hopefully then I might feel better."

A wallet was handed over, and Danny flipped it open to find a couple of pictures in the clear pockets. Danny himself was in the middle, with the other boys stood around him; arms draped across each others' shoulders. He touched the picture delicately, and looked at the next one. It was just himself and Dougie, locked in a tight embrace that can only be achieved by two guys who were perfectly comfortable with each other. Danny's face was beaming. A tear hit the clear plastic.

He dropped the wallet on the bed next to him.

"Nothing?" Tom asked, his anxiety an undertone in his voice.

"Nothing." Danny repeated, as if this was any surprise to them. He realised that they were all stood away from him, as determined not to make eye contact as he was. It was exactly like meeting someone for the first time again, and Dougie couldn't handle the tension anymore.

The smaller boy walked over to Danny's bed, and grabbed his hand. The boy on the bed recoiled, and demanded "what the fuck are you doing?"

"Danny, please, just listen-"

"NO, YOU LISTEN!" He said, interrupting and pointing at this stranger in front of him who'd rudely grabbed his hand. "I DON'T KNOW YOU! WHY ARE YOU HERE, _ANY _OF YOU?"

A shocked silence. Then, Harry spoke with disbelief. "…You, you really don't remember us? You don't remember the band, our albums, photos… anything?"

Danny felt tearful, his eyes were glistening and his vision was blurring up. Why couldn't he remember? The lump at the back of his throat was making it difficult to speak. "I'm sorry," he said pitifully.

Still standing by the bed, Dougie broke down. "This… can't be happening. Not to us, not to you! Danny, please, just think."

"WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU THINK I'VE BEEN DOING, EH? SITTING HERE LOOKING PRETTY? NO. I'VE BEEN TRYING TO REMEMBER THE PAST FEW YEARS OF MY FUCKING LIFE!" He was his own explosion now, face red and tears flowing freely. Fists clenched, he hugged himself and curled into the foetal position.

At that moment, the doctor came in. "I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you to leave. You're making my patient more unstable than he already is." He said calmly, though with immense authority.

Dougie whimpered, "No…"

"You don't have a choice. Please leave, or I will call security."

Tom, still not quite believing the situation, tried to bring Dougie out of the room. "Come on mate, you're not helping."

"NO!"

"SECURITY!"

Danny's hysterical, heaving sobs mingled with Dougie's, until two burly men burst into the room and dragged the disobeying band member out of the door.

"I CAN'T LEAVE HIM, I CAN'T! TOM, GET THEM OFF ME, PLEASE…"

Still bawling, Danny squeezed his crinkly pillow and screamed loudly. What did he do to deserve this? Wasn't being in fatal accident enough to cope with? Danny decided in that moment that God didn't exist. What kind of god would do this to someone like him, with everything to live for?

The pillow was hurled across the room, though there was nothing to break and nothing to hit, except the wall on the other side.

Danny pounded his fist on the bed, biting his tongue in anger and trying to stop the steady flow of hot salty tears down his cheeks.

"I CAN'T DO THIS, I can't… fucking… do this." He cried to no one in particular. The doctor left the private room to talk to the rest of the band. There was a lot of explaining to do.

The door swung shut, leaving the shell of a man to wonder about the life he'd lost.

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**...**

**Is it okay? :P**

**Review plz, ta**

**xxxxxxxxxx  
**


	2. The Explanation

**Hai :)**

**Another chapter!! You know, this is such a difficult story to write 'cause there's so much emotion involved :/**

**But I've managed it for all you lovely people, so please do enjoy :D**

**Merry Christmas all :)  
**

* * *

As the doctor approached the three band members, he realised that his job had never got any easier. The smaller boy, Dougie was being cradled by the fittest member, Harry. He was soothing him with soft whispers even though tears were slowly dripping down his own face. Tom, the talented member of the band was leaning against a payphone, deep in a conversation which was occasionally fractured by a heaving sob.

The three saw him coming, and at once Dougie attacked him with questions and hurt comments. "That is NOT my best friend in there, WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH HIM?" He screamed in anguish, and dragged the sleeve of his jacket over his cheeks to wipe away the tears.

"I can assure you, I have done my best to treat him," the doctor replied calmly. He'd dealt with many situations like this.

Dougie began to cry once more and whimpered, "But I don't know him. He… he's not Danny. Not _my_ Danny, anyway. I want my Danny back." He sank to the hard polished floor, and briefly wondered how many people had done the exact same thing as him. He had his back against the wall, and was hugging his legs against his chest.

The doctor felt sorry for the boy. He was only young, and he now had to deal with something that only very few people experience, and when they are much older. It felt good to shed a ray of light on the otherwise bleak and dark situation.

"There is one thing I'd like you all to know. This is not a permanent thing." Dougie looked up, hopeful, and Harry smiled widely. "But before you get your hopes up, I need to explain this to you properly, but in simpler terms so that you will understand."

Dougie and Harry waited with bated breath, not daring to speak over the doctor.

"When Danny had this accident, his head hit the floor with such force that the part of his brain which holds memory was damaged quite badly. This caused him to lose any trace of McFly from his memory, as it usually only affects major parts of one's life. I've seen other patients lose all memory of their family, but because Danny regards you boys as his family, it was McFly that he completely forgot. Are you following me so far?"

The boys nodded in unison.

The doctor took a deep breath. "So, like I say, this is not permanent. But until you can find something to trigger Danny's memory, he will stay like this."

Dougie inhaled quickly. "So if we never find the trigger…"

"…Then Danny will never be the same." The doctor finished. "Exactly."

Then, Tom put the phone down with rather more force than was needed. Everyone's attention was focused on him. "I've just talked to Fletch. He knows everything."

Harry was keen to know more, as was Dougie. "And...?"

Tom sighed, and placed his hand on his mouth. He felt physically sick; everything they'd worked for was crashing down at his feet. "He said that… if Danny's not better within a month, we can pretty much say goodbye to McFly."

A stunned silence followed. Nobody made eye contact, for fear of bursting into tears.

"…Well, we've got to find the trigger within a month then. We can do that, I know we can," said Dougie, with rather more confidence than was necessary.

Still with his hand on his mouth, Tom was paralyzed. He didn't know what to think. One part of his brain was telling him that this was all Danny's fault; that if he'd just behaved sensibly he wouldn't be in this position. The less aggressive side of his brain was disagreeing, saying that it was all _their_ fault and Danny needed and deserved all the help they could give him. Still, Danny had potentially ruined the band. Tom didn't feel altogether sure about what to do next.

The doctor sensed a lack of enthusiasm. "If it helps, I can give you some advice. There are five senses that humans possess, touch, sight, smell, taste and sound. All of these have been linked to the memory, so by elimination you could work out which will provide your trigger. We've already gathered that sight won't work; he didn't recognise you or a photo of all of you together."

Tom remained silent, staring at the same blank space on the glossy wall next to him.

Dougie was keen to jump into action. "So, next we could try… sound! We could see if he recognises any of our songs!" He made eye contact with Harry who nodded in agreement, but Tom completely ignored him.

Touching the blond boy lightly on the shoulder, Dougie asked with a concerned expression, "Tom?"

"DON'T TOUCH ME!" He screamed, and slapped the younger boy with the back of his hand. He immediately looked horrified at what he'd done, but Dougie remained rooted to the spot.

Harry couldn't believe what he'd just witnessed. In the five years of McFly, nothing like this had ever happened.

"… I'm… Dougie, I'm sorry…" Tom whispered, as he cradled his sore hand.

Tears were welling up once more in Dougie's eyes.

Harry placed a protective arm across his shoulders, and said lightly to him, "come on Doug, we're going home." He glanced back and stared at Tom, his own eyes filling with bittersweet tears.

Still holding onto his hand, Tom started to shiver violently. He felt terribly cold on the inside, but his skin felt as hot as the fires of hell. He'd completely fucked everything up. He felt like HHwefnfkjmdmsHe felt like shit for hitting Dougie; the poor boy hadn't done anything wrong.

In that moment, Tom realised how important it was to have Danny back again. The real Danny. It didn't just mean make or break for the band, it meant make or break for the relationships that went with it too.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Danny looked up with bloodshot eyes to see the silhouette of someone come into his room. It wasn't one of his 'band mates', he realised with relief. He didn't really want to see them again. It was just a reminder that he had a life before; and it wasn't nearly the same as the one he had now.

The doctor thought he'd start with a standard question. "How are you feeling?"

Not even bothering to look up, Danny parroted the doctor's tone by saying, "How the fuck do you think I'm feeling?"

"I would imagine you're confused, scared, relieved and apprehensive. That is just my opinion, however and I can't put words into your mouth. It would be easier for both of us if you tell me your feelings at this moment."

Danny finally made eye contact with him. What the doctor saw, unnerved him deeply. Danny's eyes were dull grey, without the usual glint of hope he usually saw in a patient. This boy had lost all faith in the medical system. "I'll tell you what I feel." He said, his voice beginning to crack. "I… I feel lost. Who the fuck am I? I don't even know what I've been doing for the past five years, and that's near enough a quarter of my life!" He put his fists in his hair and pulled forcefully, as if the information he wanted was on the very follicles of the hair itself.

"That won't help, as you very well know." The doctor said, referring to Danny's desperation in trying to pull his own hair out. "I could tell you who you are, if you wanted me to."

Danny stopped. He made eye contact with the doctor, and decided that he should know about himself, even though it would probably drive him crazy. Well, even crazier. "Tell me." He said, simply.

The doctor put on a pair of glasses and flipped a couple of pages on his clipboard. He was amazed at how much this boy had achieved, and yet he didn't have a clue about any of it. "'McFly, the successful British pop-rock band, have had seven number one singles. Two of their four albums have hit number one, and they have a Guinness World Record, beating the Beatles by being the youngest band to have a debut album go to number one.' Do you want me to continue?"

Lost in another world, Danny suddenly saw a series of images flash across his retinas. He heard the screams of a massive crowd, and he watched the faces of his band mates play across his secondary vision, each of them smiling. He shook his head, and the images were gone. "Wow. Yeah, please carry on."

"'They have released singles for Children in Need, Sport Relief and Comic Relief. They have met the Queen and played the Royal Variety Show. Many awards have been won, including several Smash Hit awards, a Brit award and were voted Best Live Act at the Virgin Music awards. With several sold-out arena tours under their belts, McFly have millions of fans across the globe, and have even starred in a feature film called Just My Luck with Lindsay Lohan. Being a 'guilty-secret' band, their fans are some of the most loyal in the world.'"

Danny was stunned, to say the least. How could he not remember all that? Meeting the Queen, all those awards, and being in a film with _Lindsay Lohan_?

The doctor looked sympathetic. "I can imagine this must be very tough for you, but I also need you to know about your condition…" and so he explained Danny's predicament, like he had done with the rest of McFly.

Danny's face contorted with the strain of trying to take in so much new information. "So… what, are Tom and… whatever their names were, gonna help me trigger my memory?"

"That's the idea, yes."

Still looking puzzled, Danny reflected on the prospect of the others helping him. What if he developed new friendships with them, which would be sorely missed when his memory returned? "When am I leaving the hospital?" He asked, concerned that he'd have to stay longer.

The doctor looked at his watch, which surprised Danny. He thought he'd probably look at the calendar. "You're due to leave later today. You've completely recovered physically from your accident, and emotionally you're stable."

Danny smiled thankfully and gratefully, and then began to get dressed.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Dumping his overnight bag in the corner of his large living room, Danny glanced around at the unfamiliar surroundings. He didn't think he'd ever felt more uncomfortable in his life, except when his 'band mates' had realised he wasn't the person they thought he was.

He felt relieved because, even though he was staying in the same gated community, none of the others realised he was home. He still didn't really want to see them, Danny already had a headache from the information he'd been fed earlier.

_Where would I find some headache tablets in this place?_

His immediate thought was the bathroom, but first he had to find it amongst the many rooms in the deceptively large flat. Danny eventually came across what was obviously his bedroom. It felt weird not being able to recognise his own bedroom, but Danny could just tell by the feel of it. Not dirty, but messy, and with things in the same order as he'd had them for years.

Pulling back his duvet, he smelled something… familiar. Suddenly, another flash of images whizzed across his vision and he shut his eyes to see the blurry silhouettes of two people on the bed. They were curled up against each other and giggling like schoolgirls. Danny's headache gave another throb and he put his hand on his head to stop the pain. Trying to bring back the already fading images, he whispered, "come on, come ON!"

The images had already gone, however and Danny kicked the leg of the bed in anger. He was so close to remembering everything, but who were those two people on his bed? One of them was obviously himself, but who else was there? Was it one of his band mates? Danny decided he should leave this room; it was bringing up too many questions he couldn't answer.

A door leading off of the bedroom opened to an en-suite. A medicine cupboard was situated above the sink, and on it was a mirror.

_How many times have I looked in this mirror? _

He thought, and looking at all the smudges and fingerprints, he realised that he must have looked in it every day for at least a few years. Those years were lost, until he could find his memory again.

Opening the cabinet, he picked up a packet of paracetamol, and shook it open. Danny counted eight tablets and considered taking them all. He even popped them all out of their individual pods before breaking down into harsh tears.

He leaned into the sink and threw up; he couldn't even remember when he'd last eaten, and so what was coming up seemed almost alien to him.

The tablets scattered onto the floor, and Danny sat on the floor to join them. He rested his head on raised knees and hugged his legs toward his torso. There, he cried and cried until he imagined a puddle forming on the floor beneath him, slowly drowning him and taking the pain away. And it was painful, his chest heaved and his stomach pulled and his head throbbed.

From a distance, Danny heard a door open. Then another door, and footsteps were approaching closer and faster. Then someone put a hand on his shoulder.

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**Come on, make my Christmas ;)**

**xxxxxxx  
**


	3. The Lie

**AT LAST! A NEW CHAPTER!**

**Yes, this took me a while but I got stuck. Then today I had a stroke of inspiration and I wrote like, half the chapter in half an hour XD  
You can probably tell... :P**

**DISCLAIMER: Dun own McFly or the song 'Not Alone' which is written by the beeeyootiful Danny Jones.  
(Disclaimer covers rest of story, mkay?)**

**Well, enjoy and plz do review!! :)  
**

* * *

The hand on Danny's shoulder tensed. It was comforting, in the way that a father's hand feels familiar. He wasn't worried, because nothing much worried him anymore in a world where he didn't know what his own flat was like.

"Danny," a small voice said. He recognised it from earlier as being the voice of Dougie. When he realised this however, he remembered the look on Dougie's face from at the hospital. Danny didn't think he could ever forgive himself for making this boy feel so shit.

He looked round at the boy, who also looked like he'd been crying. "I'm sorry." Danny said sincerely, and continued to gaze at the near-stranger.

"Why are you sorry Dan? You have nothing to be sorry about." Dougie asked, with a half smile.

Danny turned fully around to sit opposite the cute blond and replied, "For making you upset in the hospital." He sighed. "This is all my fault." He twisted his hands into his hair and gently pulled to try and get rid of the headache that was still assaulting his skull.

Dougie put his hand on one of Danny's, and his grip softened. "None of this is your fault. I promise you, and we're going to help you get better."

"Have you been crying?"

Shifting from his crouched position to sitting cross-legged on the tiles, Dougie replied, "Yeah. Well, it was because Tom, er, hit me."

"What? He hit you?" Danny asked, beginning to panic.

Dougie flapped his hands as if to take back the information he'd just let slip. "No, but… well, yeah. Well, you know, it's a tough time-"

"How can you possibly say that's not my fault Dougie?" asked Danny, tears once again blurring his vision. "I mean come on, he _hit_ you."

Reaching out for Danny's hand, the younger boy pleaded with a lump in his throat. "Listen to me- no, don't look away, listen-" he said, and gripped Danny's chin in order to pull it closer. "Don't cry, because I'll cry. I'm going to help you. Danny, I swear to god I will get your memory back even if it kills me. Do you understand? I love you. I need you more than the others need you, because you're my rock. Okay?"

Danny let out a sob, and gripped Dougie's hand as if his life depended on it. "Help me," he asked desperately, choking on his own tears. "I want your help."

"You were always going to get my help Dan." Dougie said with a watery smile, and pulled him into a much-needed hug. Danny smelled something familiar on his clothes, and his head pounded with a wave of fresh images. This time it was a clip of Dougie's face, lying next to his, smiling and laughing. He still couldn't place the memory though.

Danny still didn't know fully who this boy was, but he knew he'd been with him before from the familiarity of the embrace. He squeezed tighter. He placed his trust in Dougie, because he knew that he was sincere by the look in his eyes. It was determination, and Danny knew then that he would get his memory back sooner rather than later.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

The recently reunited band was gathered in Danny's living room, in a circle. In the middle of the circle was Danny's iPod dock and iPod. Tom had since apologised profusely to Dougie, who leapt into his arms and sobbed, apparently accepting it.

"Right Danny, this is Phase One of Plan: Get Danny's Memory Back." Tom said seriously.

Harry sniggered, "catchy."

Tom gave the older boy evil looks, and ignored him. "Now, what we need to test is your sound memory. I'm not sure this'll work, because you didn't recognise our voices when we spoke to you, but maybe you'll recognise our songs."

"Do you realise how weird this is gonna be for me?" Danny asked, feeling slightly daunted at the prospect of listening to himself _sing_.

Dougie patted him gently on the shoulder to reassure him. "Don't worry," he whispered, "your voice is amazing."

Danny felt himself blush, and he squirmed uncomfortably on the spot. "Come on then, let's get the embarrassment over with."

Smiling, Tom turned to the dock to fiddle with the iPod sitting in it. "We'll start off with a song you wrote; you're likely to remember this Dan."

Once Tom had selected the song, he sat back down in the circle and all eyes were focused on Danny.

"Ooh, this is my favourite one!" Dougie said, and then Tom and Harry shushed him loudly. "Sorry," he murmured.

"_Life is getting harder day by day  
And I, I don't know what to do or what to say, yeah  
And my mind is growing weak every step I take  
It's uncontrollable, now they think I'm fake…"_

Danny's eyes widened suddenly. He recognised the song, but it was so out of place. He'd written most of it years ago when he was being bullied, and he never imagined it would be part of an album like this. As the song played, Danny was transfixed by the subtle undertones of his acoustic guitar, and somewhere in his brain, something clicked into place.

"What was the name of this album?" Danny asked tentatively, already expecting the answer. He was sure he knew it, but didn't know how.

Dougie studied his face and replied, "Room on the-"

"-Third Floor." Danny said, finishing the sentence much to his own surprise. Clapping a hand to his mouth he asked in a muffled, small voice, "that's right, isn't it?"

Tom looked absolutely stunned. His jaw had dropped considerably, and his eyes were wide with amazement. "How on earth do you remember that? Has it all come back? Do you remember us now?"

So many questions; and Danny didn't want to let him down. He changed his facial expression so that he looked amused and bewildered at the same time. "Yeah! Guys, it's all back! Everything's back!"

Dougie leapt on him almost at once. The air was knocked from Danny's lungs, and with it, the breath to take back what he said before any real harm was done. The smaller boy was still gripping onto Danny, eyes wide with happiness and moisture just beginning to build up in them.

Harry clapped him hard on the back and said, "It's good to have you back mate," with a wide smile. Something in Danny's stomach swooped and he felt immediately nauseated. He knew what he was doing was wrong, but he was in too deep now.

Tom ran over and, with a tear slowly sliding down his cheek, he choked, "never been gladder to see you Danny." He grinned widely and pulled Danny into a bone-crushing hug.

As the guys told Danny the story he already knew; of how he cried and screamed himself to sleep every night in the hospital, how he refused to acknowledge the existence of them, he felt like the worst friend in the world. Danny still barely knew these people. He watched Tom's dimple twitch in his left cheek and tried to remember that familiar sight. He cast his eyes over Harry's shaved head and wondered how many different hair styles he'd already had.

It was Dougie's face however, that concerned him the most. He was staring adamantly at Danny; as if he knew that he still wasn't himself. Danny pushed him off, and said quietly, "Guys, I need to go to bed. I- I don't feel well. I'll see you all tomorrow."

Tom frowned. "But Danny-"

"I said I'll see you tomorrow. Okay?" Danny repeated with more feeling. He left the room swearing under his breath, and Harry glanced at Tom knowingly.

"Dougie?" Tom asked delicately. "Don't you think you should go and talk to him?"

The boy in question narrowed his eyes. "Why me?"

"Because of your history," Harry said plainly. Tom whacked him on the shoulder, which elicited a grunt from the oldest member.

Tom shuffled closer to Dougie, and he took his hand in his own. Dougie flinched slightly, but the blond just held on tighter. "Listen, Danny's obviously finding it hard to suddenly be thrown back into the real world again, and we think that the best person to talk to him is you."

Looking at the floor, Dougie nodded lightly.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Danny slammed the door behind him and rested against it. He then walked over to his bed and flopped on top of it, covering his face with a pillow. Feeling overwhelmed, he screamed as loudly as possible; giving himself a headache. Then again, he had a constant headache ever since he woke up from the concussion.

He heard a soft knocking on his door, and he removed the pillow and hesitated before reluctantly saying, "Come in."

As soon as Dougie's head poked round the door, Danny groaned.

"Danny, please do something for me." The smaller boy asked quickly, before he could be told to get out. He felt nervous, but he had to be sure that Danny was who he said he was.

"Why should I?" Danny asked coldly. He didn't feel like being co operative.

Taking a step closer, Dougie replied, "You're meant to be my best friend." Silence reigned, and Dougie took this as an opportunity. He grabbed Danny's acoustic guitar and held it before him. "Play one of our songs."

Danny rolled over so that he wouldn't have to look into those eyes. "You can't make me do anything."

"I know I can't. I'm asking you to do this one thing for me, please?"

Sighing, Danny pulled himself up off the bed. He approached Dougie, made eye contact, and looked at the guitar as if it were a weapon. Dougie raised his eyebrow slightly, as if to dare him. The older boy reached out for the instrument, and as he did so, he brushed the fingers of the boy standing opposite. To say there was a spark would be cliché, but Danny definitely felt something like electricity which coursed through his body, and made him feel warm and tingly.

Danny of course remembered how to play, as he'd been doing it since he was five. However, he didn't know how to play any McFly songs. Hell, he only knew one because he'd heard it ten minutes ago. Instead, to pass some of the awkward seconds, he plucked a calming tune to soothe himself while sitting on the bed.

"You can't do it, can you?"

"No, I can't."

The tears started flowing immediately. "You lied to me?"

Standing up once more, Danny replied bitterly, "no, I lied to all of you."

"H-how could you?" Dougie cried, not knowing this monster that stood before him. The Danny he knew would hold him when he cried, and he certainly wouldn't lie. Hard sobs racked his small body, and Danny couldn't help but feel a slight twinge of guilt. "I believed you! I always have believed you. Everything you've ever told me has been true in my eyes and you totally abused that." He was pointing accusingly now, and his face was red with fury.

The strange thing was though, Danny wasn't crying. He just felt numb. He shrugged, and then immediately wished he hadn't. Dougie threw a well-aimed punch to his nose, which felt like it had exploded. "Shit, that hurt!"

"YOU FUCKING DESERVED THAT, YOU COMPLETE TWAT! I don't know you. Why the FUCK did you come back if you're not even going to make the effort to get better?" Dougie shouted, rubbing his sore and bloody knuckles. He looked disgusted with the man in front of him.

Just then, Tom threw open the bedroom door and gasped. "Jesus Christ, what happened?" Harry ran in close behind and tripped over Tom in surprise. He was greeted with a rather unusual scene in which Dougie was flapping his hand, and Danny was clutching his nose desperately to stem heavy bleeding. He would have expected the situation to be the other way around.

Dougie fell sobbing into Tom's arms, who asked, "Danny, what the hell did you do to him?"

"WHAT THE FUCK? Shouldn't you be asking him what he did to me?" He asked thickly, spitting blood all over the cream carpet.

"You fucking idiot, Dougie would NEVER punch anyone, especially not you, you know that! What did you say to him?" Tom demanded, stroking the hair of Dougie soothingly.

Throwing his arms up in disbelief, Danny laughed harshly. "I still don't believe you're taking his side. Look what he did to me!"

Tom sighed. "Well, you're the one who has changed. Not him. As far as I can tell, you deserved this."

"Well excuse me for being hit by a car."

"That's not funny."

Still pinching his nose, Danny closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "Okay, you're right. I'm sorry Dougie. I didn't mean it. Of course I care, and I'm sorry I lied."

"Wait, what did you lie about?" Harry asked.

Dougie wiped his eyes, and surfaced from the comfort of Tom's knitted jumper. "He's not Danny."

"Of course I'm Danny", he said matter-of-factly and sighed, "just… not the Danny you think I am."

Tom looked like he could have punched Danny himself. "…Is this your idea of some kind of sick joke? Do you think it's funny how much we want you to get better?"

"N-no, of course not-"

"THEN WHY?"

Danny was pleading now. "I didn't want to let you down…"

Tom laughed; it was a tired sound, like he couldn't take any more. "Didn't you ever think, you stupid boy, that this would hurt us more in the long run? All of us? We love you too much; all we want is for you to be better. Don't lie to us, okay?"

The Northerner cracked a small smile. It stretched muscles in his cheeks that he hadn't used in a long time. "I'm so sorry guys."

"Come here," Tom said, and gestured for a hug. Danny accepted gratefully, and held on for his life. Dougie and Harry joined in, and soon they all had tears in their eyes. Dougie broke off first, and wiped Danny's eyes with the cuff of his sleeve.

"I'm sorry for punching you Danny."

Smiling, Danny waved the apology away. "Don't worry, I deserved it."

A wide smile graced Dougie's face, and he grabbed the older boy's wrist with enthusiasm. "Let's go clean you up."

As they left the room, the skater boy winked at Tom, who winked back.

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**...Yeah I know the end was kinda weird, but it's slashy goodness, right? XD**

**Review now please :) they make me happy XD**

**xx  
**


	4. The Shock

**Well hai :D**

**Next chapterrrr is ready for y'all to read x3**

**Now, I can't seem to get away from the more emotional side of this fic, so there is lots of crying and stuff throughout XD  
(not much in this chapter though :))**

**Next chapter will have more slashy love, I promise.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Danny was dragged into his bathroom by an over-enthusiastic Dougie, who plonked the other boy on the edge of the bathtub. He sighed, and with one finger, lightly traced the area that he hit Danny.

"I hit you good, didn't I?"

Danny batted his hand away, and said, "Screw you."

Amused by this show of aggression, Dougie smiled sweetly and whispered, "I'm just being silly." He put his hand back on Danny's face and stroked it before going to the cupboard to get some cotton wool.

Danny watched his every move, transfixed by the small movements and the way his hands moved. Dougie had lovely hands, they were soft and small, and the feeling of his hand on Danny's face still lingered. Dougie came back, the cotton wool wet with warm water from the tap.

"Now, this might sting a bit…" Dougie said delicately, really hoping he wouldn't hurt his best friend any more than he had done.

The wet cotton wool touched his face, and Danny hissed as it stung the cut above his nose. Dougie flinched, but the older boy motioned for him to continue. With the wound clean and all traces of blood removed from his face, Danny smiled gratefully.

"Thank you Dougie."

He smiled widely. "It's the least I could do, now let me get a plaster."

To try and take his mind off looking at Doug's nice bum, Danny brought up something that had been playing in his mind recently. "Don't you find it weird that you know everything about me, yet, at the moment I know nothing about you? I'm actually a bit freaked out by it."

Dougie found a plaster and sat down on the edge of the bath next to Danny to apply it. "That's what it's always been like," he said, meticulously trying to place it on the top of Danny's nose, and tongue sticking out the corner of his mouth. "With fans, you know? They know everything about our lives… there! Done."

Danny stayed silent for a while. He realised that there must have been millions of others who knew everything about him too. People he'd never even met before. He wondered how he'd actually coped for five years.

Waving a hand in front of his face, the younger boy said, "Danny?" Flicking his gaze across, he saw that Dougie's face was concerned. "You okay?"

"Yeah I'm good, now come on, the others will be wondering what we've been doing all this time." He thought it best not to weigh Dougie down with any more of his burdens, so led him back out of the bathroom and into the living room.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Tom was back in business mode. The band had gathered once again in Danny's living room, except this time Danny and Dougie were sharing a sofa, and Harry was sprawled on the rug in the middle of the floor. Tom dominated the space by pacing back and forth.

"Well, I think we can brush over that little… disruption and pretend it never happened, right?" He asked, giving the rest of the band significant looks. No one replied. "Anyway, what I was going to say is that we were obviously making some kind of progress because Danny remembered the name of our debut album."

Danny shuffled slightly and said, "yeah, but I honestly don't know where that came from."

"That's not the point," Tom argued, getting frustrated. "You _remembered_, Dan! We must have triggered something."

"Didn't trigger _everything_ though, did it?" Danny muttered under his breath.

Sighing, Tom shook his head and ignored the last comment. It didn't help to argue, they'd already seen that. "Listen, we could try another one of Danny's senses. How about 'touch'?"

Harry sniggered, and Tom threw his shoe at him.

"That sounds like a good idea. Wait, I'll go get some stuff for Dan to touch and we'll see if he remembers any of it." Dougie said, and rushed out of the room in case Tom decided to throw anything in his direction.

"Poor Doug. Look, he's terrified of you!" Harry giggled, but his laughing died down as he saw the death look on Tom's face.

The room went as quiet as a morgue, and nobody seemed to want to speak. Everyone was thinking the same thoughts, but none conveyed them to the group, for fear of complete denial. The atmosphere was tense, and Danny tried to direct his gaze anywhere in the room instead of onto the other two.

"What if..?"

"Danny, don't." Tom interrupted.

"But Tom…"

"Just shut up! Danny, I know what you're going to ask, so don't. It doesn't need to be brought up." He sat on the sofa and rested his head in cupped hands. Blond hair spilled through the fingers like spaghetti.

It was Danny who stood up now. "What, so we're just gonna dismiss the possibility that I could remember everything that's happening now? That, when I finally get my old self back, I'll be different because of all this? I'm concerned, Tom. I'm concerned for you and for the band; I'm sorry if it offends you but… but I can't help it."

Tom approached Danny carefully and stared into his grey-blue eyes. He saw a glint that he hadn't seen since before the accident, and it made him smile gently.

"What are you grinning at?" Danny questioned, brow crinkling.

The blond boy's smile became broader and he hugged his band mate for dear life, clamping his arms around a toned torso. With his face in Danny's chest he whispered, "You're still in there. I can see it in your eyes. You're going to be fine. I know you are."

Accepting the hug, the younger boy felt tears prick in his eyes. It was at that moment he realised how important he was to this band. His band. These guys weren't trying to help Danny for their own benefit; they were helping him because he needed it, and because they loved him. All he managed to say, in a croaky voice was, "Thanks Tom."

At that moment, Dougie walked back in the room. He saw Tom gripping Danny fervently and seemed a little put off. Danny didn't notice, but Harry did. He kept a mental note of that for later.

"Ahem, I have some stuff now guys…" Dougie said quietly, his knuckles white from holding on to armfuls of Danny's belongings, and from the jealousy of watching Tom being that close to his best friend.

Tom let go of the Northerner, and Dougie was all smiles again. He dumped the pile on the rug and filtered through it to find a harmonica that was given to Danny by Bruce Springsteen himself.

"Now, do you remember this?" Dougie asked, and handed the harmonica to Danny. All eyes watched and waited, to see any signs of recognition.

Danny smiled a genuine smile. "Of course I do. I was right at the front at that gig, and I sang to every song. I had this framed afterwards." His face dropped. "In fact, where is the frame?"

Tom stepped in, in case the situation was to descend into chaos. "During a pillow fight we had once, Dougie accidentally smashed it. We were going to get another one as soon as possible, but then you had the accident. Sorry Danny." Dougie stood completely still, as if to try and blend into the wall. He didn't want to upset Danny any further.

What could he say? Danny was fuming, he was absolutely heartbroken, but there was nothing he could do about it now. "It's okay, really. I can get another one made, it shouldn't cost too much."

Dougie breathed an audible sigh of relief, and reached down for the next item. This time it was a Breitling watch that Rod Stewart had given Danny as a present. Danny gasped.

"That watch is amazing!" He cried, not quite believing it was his.

Dougie smiled. "Rod Stewart gave this to you in 2006. Then we rode from Ireland back home on his private jet. Here, hold it."

The cold metal felt alien in Danny's hand. He attached it to his wrist, and it fit snugly. Not too tight, not too loose. It _was_ his, he knew it somewhere in his mind, but Danny still didn't recognise it.

"We went on _Rod Stewart's_ private jet?"

Tom joined in at this point. "Yeah, it was you who started talking to him actually. You two became like, best friends."

Lost for words, all Danny could do was stutter. "But… I… what?"

Harry got up and approached Tom. He pulled him to one side and whispered to him, leaving Danny to stutter to himself and Dougie to look on suspiciously. "Listen Tom, this obviously isn't working is it? He's just getting more anxious, and it's not doing him a lot of good."

"What, so shall we just give up then?" Tom replied in a harsh whisper. He held his arms up in despair, and flattened his palms over his hair.

Harry sighed. "No, of course not! It's just; this 'touch' thing isn't really working is it?"

"But Harry, I'm starting to panic now, 'sound', 'sight' and now 'touch' haven't worked! There are only two senses left, and what if those two don't work either?"

Taking Tom's hand in his own, Harry replied, "Tom, Danny is my best friend, and I'm not going to let him stay like this. I'm going to do whatever it takes, and I know you are too. It is going to take some time though, you have to appreciate that."

Tom reduced his voice back to a whisper, but didn't make full eye-contact. This troubled Harry. "Yeah, you're right."

Smiling, Harry said, "I know I'm right." His face visibly changed when he remembered something however. "Mate, haven't we got-?"

"-Yeah, yeah we have."

"And it's on Thursday, right? Today is Tuesday."

Tom's eyes lowered. He knew what Harry was talking about. "Yes."

Now flailing his arms and speaking loudly, Harry was beginning to attract Dougie's attention as well as Danny's, who had stopped stuttering to himself. "Well don't you think we should tell him?! Then maybe, we can do something about it!"

"Like what, Einstein? We're doing all we can, our best, but our best just isn't good enough is it?" Tom said angrily. He noticed Dougie approaching them.

"Guys, what are you talking about?"

Tom gestured wildly with his hands in Harry's general direction. "We were, uh, just discussing Harry's haircut! Yeah, uhm, he thinks he should grow it long again and I told him not to…"

Harry slapped his face with his palm. There was no way Dougie would believe that. "Doug mate, we're done. We'll come back now, okay?"

Still looking suspicious, he replied, "alright, but hurry it up. Danny's getting restless." Then he walked away, head peering over his shoulder occasionally to check on the two arguing band mates.

Tom avoided Harry's gaze, but instead motioned towards Danny. "We should uh, get going," he said awkwardly.

Before he had a chance to move though, Harry grabbed his upper arm. He held it tight for a moment before Tom finally looked him in the eyes. He knew there was something the blond wasn't telling him.

"Tom… did you ever think about just leaving Danny to it? I mean, carrying on with McFly without him?"

Harry knew it was a stupid question. There was no McFly without Danny, as he had been the one who had been there right at the beginning with Tom. He needed to know though, because he was anxious that his friend cared more about his career than his relationships.

The blond hesitated. That was all Harry needed. "You did, didn't you?" He asked, afraid of the answer.

"Of course I didn't. Don't be so stupid." Though his words were convincing, his voice wasn't, and Tom even had a hard job convincing himself that he truly meant what he said. His eyes stayed turned towards the ground, and he fiddled with the ring on his index finger.

The only thing Harry could do was shake his head slowly and walk away. He approached Danny and touched him lightly on the shoulder. "Danny, we need you to help us with something."

"Okay… but what could I possibly help you with?" He replied, slightly uneasy about the potential answer to that question.

Tom walked over to the group and started to bite his nails. It was obvious that whatever this was about had been worrying him for days. Danny noticed the bags under Tom's eyes and immediately felt sorry for him. "On Wednesday we have promo for our new single. Thing is, all of us have to be there and we also have to perform live."

"…But today is Monday?"

Tom shuffled his feet and hunched his shoulders. It was as if he expected Danny to hit him. "We're sorry; we should have told you earlier."

Dougie put his arm over Danny's shoulder to reassure him. He shrugged it off though, much to the younger boy's disappointment. "You mean to tell me I have less than two days to learn a song I don't remember and to know exactly what to say in an interview?"

The band stayed silent. What could they say at a time like this?

Danny dug his thumbs into his temples. His constant headache was beginning to blur any rational thought. Danny knew he needed to get away for a while.

"I'm going for a walk." Danny mumbled to himself, and walked out of the room.

Dougie turned away with tears in his eyes and his fist pressed to a thin-lipped mouth.

In the distance, a door slammed shut and a small boy whispered, "Please Danny, don't do anything stupid. I love you." A tear hit the floor, and he suddenly felt lonelier than he ever had in his life.

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**Well, please review and I'll write more for ya!!**

**xxx  
**


	5. The Runaway

**Hello thar. XD**

**First off, I'd like to thank all the anonymous reviewers for commenting on this fic. It means so much to me that people outside the FFN community are reading this and enjoying it x3 your support is incredibly inspirational, so thank you again for that :D**

**This chapter is dedicated to DarkElements10, because they love a bit of Pones lovin' just as much as I do, and I appreciate the fact she comments every chapter XD  
THANK YOU!**

**This chapter's a bit longer; aren't you all so lucky?? XD  
Well proud of this beginning bit, and I hope you all enjoy it too x3  
**

* * *

Danny slammed the door behind him and stood for a moment. In all honesty, he didn't have a clue where to go, but he didn't have any intention of going back. The stairs seemed to stretch on forever below him, and he stumbled down them half-heartedly, then kicked open the front door.

The rain hammered down onto new pavements, and it bounced back up higher to meet Danny's knees. The sky above was as black and dangerous as his thoughts. Lightning flashed, and thunder followed immediately. Danny stomped through the storm, splashing murky brown water up his legs, and his shirt becoming almost completely see-through.

Anybody he encountered would stare from underneath their umbrellas at the band member, but none would approach him. They knew when to leave him well alone. One girl whispered, "Danny", ever so lightly as he sloshed past, but of course he didn't reply. Eventually he came to a forest. The droplets of water flooded the muddy forest floor, and any fresh water just hit the ground with a dull thunk, and threw itself against the nearest tree.

Pacing through the forest, Danny still didn't stop. Filthy water bled up his jeans and made his legs numb with cold. He looked at his hands, which were pink from the chill and pushed them under his armpits to keep warm. Obviously he wasn't wearing a coat, and the rolled up sleeves on his shirt did nothing to protect Danny from the elements.

He must have walked for a few miles before he came to a footpath, leading to an old bridge over the main road below. By now it was dark, but it was still raining harder than ever. Danny threw his head back and salt water mixed with polluted as he cried to the heavens. He'd often wondered if you could tell if someone was crying if it was raining and now as he looked down over the cars which sped underneath him, he wondered if the small people going about their daily lives could tell that he was pouring his heart out.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

"I'm worried about him," Dougie said, his eyes unfocused and his mouth chewing on a ragged thumbnail.

Tom sighed impatiently. "Dougie please, come and sit down. You're not doing any good by standing over there! And in any case, I'm sure he'll be back soon; he just needed to cool off."

"But Tom, it's freezing out there! Have you seen how hard it's raining? He's been gone all afternoon…"

Harry and the blond looked at each other. Of course, Danny had been gone more than a couple of hours, but they refused to believe that he wouldn't come back. He had to come back, right?

Dougie made a sudden movement, which startled Harry. "Right, I'm going to look for him."

"Don't be stupid, you'll catch your death out there," the older member said.

"You just don't give a shit, do you? Danny is out there, right now!" He motioned out of the window at the bleak conditions and his face was contorted with rage. "He's… I… I can't let him stay out there by himself! There's no telling what he might do."

Tom stood to try and be the voice of reason. "But Dougie mate, he's always come back before, hasn't he?"

Dougie was already shrugging a thick coat on, however as he said, "But we all know Danny's not himself, don't we? So I need to make sure he's okay. I'll be back as soon as I can."

The door slammed shut for the second time that afternoon, and Tom massaged his head with one hand. Harry gazed off into the distance and said, "I do care about him. I just can't say it like Dougie can."

Tom nodded in agreement, and the two stayed silent for a while before gently linking their little fingers; hoping desperately that their friends would make it back safely.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Puffing and panting, Dougie reached the other side of the forest and surveyed the area, heaving chilly breaths that caught in his throat and almost choked him. Putting both hands on his knees, he bent over to try and get rid of the stitch that had been cutting into his side for at least a mile.

He straightened finally, and laughed a laugh of disbelief and relief as he saw his best friend draped over the brickwork of an old bridge. The figure was shaking from the cold, and Dougie found a second burst of energy to run over and hug it tight. Blotched eyes met triumphant sea-green ones in the moonlight and Danny hugged back, grateful for the contact.

"How did you know I was here?" The elder asked in a hoarse voice.

Dougie laughed again, still not believing his luck. "You always come here when you're upset. It's your quiet place. I didn't actually think you'd be here, but by some kind of miracle, you are."

The rain filled into the silence, tapping its own tune on the concrete underfoot and thunder still played overhead. Both boys gazed at each other, flicking from eye to eye, trying to remember each tiny detail. Then Danny gave a rattling shiver, and Dougie snapped back into the real world.

Tiny rivulets of water trickled down Danny's face, and droplets clung to the skin, mingling with tears to form some new substance. His hair was sodden, and it stuck to his cheeks like it had been drawn there. Two dimensional. All of this, Dougie thought, was absolutely adorable.

"Come on, we'd better go home. Tom will really start to get antsy about practising for our promo." Dougie said, offering Danny his own coat although it was soaked through.

Smiling, Danny pushed the coat away and said, "No, you wear it. You need it more than I do." Then he pulled Dougie into another bear hug and whispered, "Thanks for coming. It means so much to me."

The younger boy shivered, but not from the cold. Danny being so close had made him go all tingly and the contact with his wet skin made Dougie think all sorts of thoughts.

Pulling back, the younger boy noticed Danny's expression had changed. He seemed confused, and so asked, "What's wrong? Danny?"

He didn't reply, because he was having yet another flashback. His head was pounding and he saw himself in a million places at once. A hotel room, a bar, a studio, a stage, a tour bus. Happy memories. Memories that he still couldn't reach, even though they were there at the forefront of his mind, and he could practically touch them. Something inside of Danny wanted to be closer to Dougie. He wanted to hold him and feel his heat until everything came back, because somehow he knew that he held the answer to becoming himself again. But who would believe that?

"Nothing… nothing's wrong." Danny replied quietly, his eyes somewhere else and his brain not focusing entirely on Dougie.

"Come on then, let's get back." Dougie shouted over the rain. He linked one hand with Danny and they ran the few miles home, barely becoming out of breath. Each pounding step seemed to match Dougie's heartbeat, and he looked round at Danny, his face partially in the moonlight. The older boy smiled down at him, and suddenly his heart skipped a beat. Funnily enough, his foot did too.

Danny watched Dougie fly over a protruding tree root, but managed to grab his forearm before he hit the ground. Pulling him back up, he said matter-of-factly, "Watch where you're going," and smirked.

They kept running, and Dougie didn't say a word. He could feel where Danny had grabbed his arm, and it was hurting slightly. He rubbed the area and decided that he didn't mind if a bruise formed there, because it would be a reminder- for a little while- of when _this_ Danny touched him.

Soon enough, the pair reached the gates to McFly Village. Danny stared blankly at the computerised password keypad, and Dougie tutted loudly. He leaned across to punch the numbers in, but Danny pushed him against one of the gates.

"Ouch, Danny! What the hell are you doing?"

Danny flapped a hand at the younger boy in a sort of shushing motion. "I wanna see if I can remember this."

Dougie placed his palm flat on his face. "Danny, there's a time and place for this. I'm really, _really_ tired and I just want to be in bed right now." He looked up, and the other boy had his eyes closed in concentration. The occasional twitch lifted the corner of his mouth.

"I know this." He murmured. "I do know this; I must have done it loads of times before." He placed one finger lightly on the keypad, and slowly typed, 2… 9… 0… 3.

"How the fuck did you do that?" Dougie asked as the system beeped happily and swung open the gate. His eyes were wide with disbelief, and he cracked a small smile. It was one of victory; he knew he would have his Danny back soon.

"I dunno really, the numbers were just sort of _there_ in my head. What do they mean?"

Dougie smiled at him, but inside he was slightly upset that he didn't get the relevance of this code. "Our first single was released on the 29th of March. '2903'. Get it?"

Danny beamed. "Yeah I do get it! So all of this stuff I don't remember, it's in my head, but I just can't get to it right now?"

"I guess you could say that. Come on, I'm freezing my balls off." Dougie yanked the other boy through the gateway before it could close again, and he sprinted round a corner towards the massive three-storey flat complex they shared. The rain had turned into a sort of drizzle, but still they shivered from underneath wet clothes.

They reached the doorway, and Dougie swore loudly.

"What?"

"Don't have my fucking key, do I?" He replied and banged his head on the tall door.

Danny sighed. "Stand back," he said in a bored voice.

"Why?" Dougie asked, but moved anyway.

Without warning, Danny took a step back and barged the door with his shoulder. It flew open with such speed that he was surprised the neighbours didn't hear it. Dougie jumped out of his skin with the noise.

"There, problem solved." Danny said triumphantly, and a self-satisfied grin spread across his face.

Dougie simply stared in shock at the door. "I hope that shuts again. I don't want fan girls waking up next to me."

Danny laughed, and stepped inside the threshold. He couldn't believe how warm it was in comparison to outside. Grabbing the door, he clicked it shut and locked it to demonstrate that it still worked. "See? It's just fine."

It was Dougie's turn to smile. "Well, okay then. You're off the hook this time. Come on; let's get rid of these wet clothes."

He pushed open the door to his flat, and Danny realised it was familiar. It might have been the smell that wafted into his nostrils on first contact, or it might have even been the fact it was almost identical to his own. Whatever it was, it gave Danny a tingly feeling in the pit of his stomach.

"You okay Dan?"

"Yeah, yeah, fine thanks. Just got a weird feeling in my stomach, that's all." Danny replied, feeling actually quite sick. He didn't mind though; all of this was a step in the right direction, no matter how small.

Both boys got changed into fresh boxer shorts, and then hit the awkward topic in conversation about sleeping arrangements.

"Well I can just go back to mine…" Danny said, pointing a thumb out the front door and up towards the ceiling.

Dougie flapped impatiently and turned red. "Don't be stupid; you're already here now. I'll set you up in the spare room." He padded off and left Danny standing on a cosy rug. He hugged himself tightly and his eyes travelled across the ceiling, the walls and then the floor. Dougie certainly had a lot of merchandise and bass guitars.

The younger boy came back with a beaming smile on his angelic face. "It's all done. I suggest we go to bed soon. It's already like, one in the morning and we've-" He yawned right on cue. "-We've got to get up early so you can practise our single."

"Okay then, I'll just…" Danny started, looking around. "Where..?"

Dougie giggled. "It's this way." He led him out of the living room and into a spacious, clean, cream room. The bed was big, and the duvet looked fluffy and welcoming.

"Thanks Dougie," Danny said with a smile. He reached across and hugged him gratefully, ignoring Dougie's hitched breath of surprise.

"No problem, sleep well Dan."

As the door clicked shut, Danny saw a wide smile on the younger boy's face. He shook his head in confusion, and climbed into the soft bed. Exhaustion enveloped his body and he realised how much walking (and running) he's done that day. Surrounded in these thoughts, he fell uncomfortably into sleep. However, it wasn't as peaceful as he would have liked it to be.

"_Come on Danny… come on! Come over here."_

_Dougie was shouting at him from across a busy road. The traffic was rushing past at tremendous speeds, and as Danny took a step closer to the edge, he felt as if he was going to be sucked under the massive lorry that hurtled past at that second. _

_Opening his mouth, Danny tried to shout. 'I can't get there, I can't..!' His head said, but his vocal chords had failed him, and all that came out was a desperate sigh. He wanted to scream in frustration, but obviously that was out of the question. _

_Then Dougie started to cry. "Danny, please! I need you!" The tears cascaded from his eyes and down his cheeks, and even from where Danny was stood he could see the pain on the boy's features. _

_In pure desperation, Danny began to search for a gap in the constant flow of cars, but the colours blurred together until it was one singular vehicle that never seemed to end. Looking to his left and right, hair flapped in his face and he began to cry, knowing he couldn't do a thing._

_He looked up, and Dougie was in complete despair. Now his tears had formed rivers that travelled down his body and formed a puddle on the floor. "I love you!" He shouted finally, and Danny was knocked over by a rushing river of Dougie's tears. _

Danny sat bolt upright. He was drenched in his own sweat, thankfully not the tears of his friend sleeping next door. He shuffled out of the soaking bed and quietly padded into the hall. He poked his head round Dougie's bedroom door, and then whispered softly, "Doug, I had a bad dream."

The younger boy stretched and groaned. He sat up, and pushed long hair out of his face. Danny thought he looked adorable like that; half-asleep. "What's up mate?" He said; his voice hoarse.

Stepping further into the room, Danny stood awkwardly with one hand scratching the back of his neck. "I… uh… had a bad dream."

Dougie smiled gorgeously, and motioned towards the bed. "Come here then." He flipped back the duvet and patted the space next to him.

Danny gratefully jumped into the bed, and went to thank the other boy. However, he was already asleep. He laughed to himself and immediately felt much better in Dougie's vicinity. He was laying with his back to him, and Dougie's breath tickled his back which gave him gooseflesh.

The next moment seemed to last forever. Dougie squirmed closer to Danny, and he wrapped his arms around his waist. Danny's breath hitched in surprise, but he felt comforted by the action. Almost immediately, he fell asleep.

As soon as he heard Danny's gentle snoring, Dougie opened one eye and surveyed the scene. Then he finally settled, closed both eyes and grinned triumphantly before drifting off into a heavy and dreamless sleep.

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**Thanks guys, see you next time! ;D**

**xxx  
**


	6. The Preparation

**OHMAHGOSHGUYS  
I am so sorry about how late this is!! XD**

**I just gotta say, thank you for putting up with me. I know I'm useless! And thanks to you if you're a silent reader, and just reading from afar. To my regulars: I love you. Srsly, you keep me writing and I just feel great about posting because I know you'll give me your honest opinions :) **

**Please enjoy this, and tell me what you think afterwards x3**

**Ye can give me a slap on the wrist if you feel it's appropriate. -sticks out wrist-**

**:P  
**

* * *

When Danny woke up, he was sticky with sweat. The reason for this was that he happened to be entwined with Dougie. He jumped a mile, and there was an unsticking noise as he pulled himself away from the younger boy. It was as if his body didn't want to let go.

Dougie didn't wake up, fortunately, but Danny stood over him and watched for a while. He seemed so peaceful and he watched the little chest rise and fall with every slow breath. Dougie's life seemed so much easier compared to his own; he didn't have to deal with losing his memory, and all his worries were carried by other people. Carried by assistants, and even by Tom and Harry. He wished his life would just go back to normal as soon as possible. He didn't think he could take anymore surprises, and Danny certainly hoped there weren't any more to come.

Just then, the sleeping boy woke up and he ran one hand through sandy locks. He stretched, and with the other hand rubbed his eyes. Opening them, he saw Danny and smiled. For the first time in a while, Danny blushed.

He couldn't understand it. Why did this boy, this man, make him blush this time, when he'd never blushed in his presence before? "Hey Doug. Did you sleep well?"

"Actually, yeah. Better than I have done in a while! Must have been 'cause you were with me." He grinned and winked at Danny.

Said boy went numb, and stuttered when he next spoke. "Yeah, well um, I-I better go get ready, you know, for the thing…", and with that he ran from the room and back up to his own flat. He breathed a sigh of relief on the staircase; he had felt incredibly awkward around his younger band mate.

Pushing the door open, he saw Tom and Harry sitting upright on his sofa, but both were still out of it and had their fingers linked together. He waved his hand in front of both faces, but neither woke up. Danny left them to quickly get dressed into clean clothes, and then came back. He took this opportunity to say what he had wanted to say for a long time.

Crouching on the floor in front of them both, he looked from Harry, to Tom, to Harry again. He stayed like this for a while before eventually speaking in a low and quiet voice. "Guys, I'm too scared to say this to your faces in case you deny it. But you know what? I know I'm a pain, and I know I'm a burden on you both. In fact, I wouldn't have been surprised if you two and Dougie just left me to get on with my life and start anew. But you know, you didn't. I didn't appreciate it as much as I should have done at first, I know that, but yesterday I realised something." He shuffled and sat on the wood laminated floor, and then began to pick the edge of the fluffy rug as he spoke. "I realised that you three are amazing people. You love me so much that you were willing to help me get back on my feet and you know what? I basically owe my life to you…"

Dougie crept up the stairs and stopped for a second outside Danny's front door as he heard a low murmur. Placing one ear gently on the door and opening it the tiniest crack, he looked in. Sat with his back to him, Danny was talking to Tom and Harry. He decided not to interrupt, but to listen.

"… I love you guys. I feel like I barely know you, but I do. I love you. Dougie too." He sighed and rubbed his face with both hands. Dougie had to lean in closer to catch the next part as Danny started speaking even more quietly. "Actually I don't know how I feel about Doug right now. When he smiles at me, well, I just… God I don't know but it does crazy things to me. I blushed this morning! I slept in the same bed as him and I woke up completely tangled up with him. You know what the utterly ridiculous thing is though? I liked it."

Outside the door, Dougie had a sharp intake of breath and put his hand over his mouth. Tears began to well up in his eyes, and he couldn't believe what he was hearing. It couldn't possibly be true… could it?

Danny continued but his voice cracked. "I just, w-well I just don't think I could tell him that. What happens when I get my memory back? Eh? I probably won't like him anymore. Well, love. I think I do love him. Not like I love you two, but stronger. You know what I'm saying though. I just can't do that to him. It's probably better that he doesn't know. We'll both be happier that way, I'm sure." Finally Danny sighed. He stayed silent for a little while, and just stared at the two sleeping band members as if they were an enthralling art display that held some hidden meaning. "Thank you. That's really what I wanted to say. And, I'm sorry I can't say this to you when you're awake, but your subconscious will probably remember this anyway. So thanks for letting me get that off my chest." He stood up and stared for a while longer.

Slowly, Dougie crept his way back downstairs and wiped his cheeks. He couldn't believe what he'd just heard, but he could never tell Danny he'd heard it. Like he said; it's better that they didn't act on their feelings. Not while Danny wasn't himself, anyway. This time, he ran up the stairs to purposefully make noise.

He burst the door open. "Hey Dan!" Tom and Harry both jumped, and then groaned.

"Jesus Christ, do you have to be so loud Dougie?" Tom moaned while holding his head like it was fragile. Harry nodded in agreement.

"Sorrryyyyy," he said, behaving happier than he perhaps should have been. It was difficult to be miserable though, considering the situation.

Tom looked around at where Dougie had been looking and saw Danny freshly dressed and safe. He positively beamed, and ran over to him. "Danny, I'm so glad you're okay."

Danny smiled. "Of course I am. I've been through more than this, right?" He grinned in remembrance, and Tom mimicked. He stretched his arms out to the blond and pouted.

"You silly twat. Don't run away again, okay?" Tom demanded, but then accepted the hug. Harry then walked over and hugged the curly-haired Northerner too.

"We were really worried about you." Harry said sincerely. Danny smiled gratefully and nodded. Tears were filling up in his eyes and a lump formed at the back of his throat.

Finally, Danny felt able to speak as he said, "Guys, I don't think I'll be going away anytime soon." He grinned and blinked the last of his tears away.

All four band members stood comfortably for a while before noticing the silence that had filled the room. Dougie took the opportunity to glance at Danny and wink, and as a consequence he found himself blushing again. The younger boy bit his lip and grinned. His test had proved successful.

Tom glanced around at everyone, and then said, "Right then guys! Let's get this rehearsal going, eh?" He clapped his hands in excitement, and grinned evilly at Danny.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

"Okay, so our new song is called 'Down Goes Another One'; it's actually really simple to play." Tom said, trying to be as encouraging as possible with Danny eyeing him expectantly. Dougie nodded in agreement as Tom continued his lesson.

Switching on a home projector, the lyrics and tabs for the song flicked onto a large screen and Tom cleared his throat. "There's only a few chords, and I can do the solo if you're not comfortable playing it."

Danny shook his head. "No, I want to do it. I need to see if it'll help me remember." He smiled at Dougie significantly, and the younger boy blushed.

"Grab your guitar then Daniel; your fingers will be _burning_ after I'm done with you." Tom said, rubbing his hands together in anticipation of the lesson ahead.

The rest of the band watched as Tom made Danny play the song over and over until he got it right.

"NO Danny! Remember; A minor, C major, G major then D major!! Don't forget the D!" Tom was relentless. The strain showed on Danny's face, and he looked fit to explode. Dougie looked on worriedly; thinking that maybe the elder was pushing him too hard. Deep down he knew it was necessary to the success of the band though.

It was then, that Danny decided it was all too much. He threw the guitar strap off his shoulder and dumped the instrument on the floor. The others looked at him with puzzled expressions, and he rubbed his head with a hand. "I… need a break." He stomped out of the room and slammed the door.

Four eyes bored into Tom. Then Dougie opened his mouth to speak. Tom interrupted. "Go on, I dare you to say it."

"You pushed him way too hard." Dougie responded almost immediately.

Tom stood up. "Dougie, we are LIVE on television tomorrow morning in front of millions of people! What do you expect me to do? Sit back and let him do it at his own pace, and then award him a cookie?"

Dougie faced him, unperturbed about the height difference. "No Tom, but it's not his fault he lost his memory is it? Just… be nicer, yeah?"

"Sorry, but I think he could try harder." In the background he saw Harry rest his head in a hand as a sign of disagreement. "Actually, no. I'm not sorry. He's the stupid fucking _idiot_ who ran in front of that car in the first place!"

Harry couldn't avoid the situation any longer. He felt angry; rage was building in his stomach as he realised he'd been lied to. "Tom, you complete and utter _liar_! You told us that you didn't think it was his fault! I can't believe you. This band means more to you than he does, doesn't it?"

"I… You… Neither of you understand."

Dougie shook his head. "What, we don't understand how much this band means to you? Of course we do! We love McFly as much as you do, but we still think Danny comes before any of it. He's our best friend, and we couldn't live without him, right? Imagine if he'd…"

Tears were rising rapidly in his eyes and he was unable to continue. Harry did so for him, in a much softer voice than before. "Look, what we're trying to say is that we'd much rather Danny was with us. We feel so grateful that he didn't die that day, and we just need you to know that although we are behind you one hundred percent, your methods can be slightly… unnecessary."

Defeated, Tom looked at the floor. He felt utterly ashamed of himself and half-wished the floor would swallow him whole. "I'm really sorry. I didn't mean what I said about Danny, and, well, I'll try not to be so hard on him."

With a heaving sob, Dougie stuttered, "I-It's okay Tom; this is a stressful time f-for all of us." He gave a weak smile. "I'd better go talk to him." With that, he traced Danny's steps out of the room.

Harry looked significantly at Tom, though he was still angry. How could he say that about Danny? He obviously did feel that way if he said it with such passion. Harry didn't feel completely ready to forgive him just yet.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Danny's bedroom door was shut. He obviously didn't want any company. Through the door he could hear him desperately practicing the song on his electric guitar and shouting, "DAMN" when he got something wrong. The amp must have been turned up to at least 9.

Dougie knew that knocking would have been useless. Hesitating slightly, he gently opened the door; waiting for something or someone to slam it shut again. No such disturbance occurred though, so he took this as an invitation to fully enter the room. Facing him and leaning on a bedpost, Danny gave a small smile.

"I'm glad it's you." He said honestly, telling Dougie exactly what he was thinking.

Dougie shrugged, "I couldn't let Tom come in here; he might lose it. Harry's not the most tactful person either is he?"

"So you didn't come in here because you wanted to?" Danny asked, and his stare penetrated the younger boy's soul. Of course he'd wanted to.

Reaching across to the amp, he turned it off. Then he sat beside Danny and looked at him for a while before saying, "I came here because I know you're feeling under pressure. I'd hate you to feel like you have nobody, because that's not true. You're my best friend, and I'm always here for you."

This seemed to make Danny feel better. "You know what Doug? After my accident, the thing that hurt me most was that you guys were familiar to me, but I just couldn't place who you were. Even now, I know there's so much I still don't remember about you that I really should. Like your birthday and… and when we first met. Do you know what I mean?" He searched the bassist's face for some sign of acknowledgement.

"Well, no." Dougie replied with a half-grin. "But I'm doing my best to try to understand your situation. You're still the same Danny we love, and that gives me a lot of hope. You'll remember soon enough, I'm sure."

Danny smiled. "Thanks Doug."

"No problem. Also, Tom's really sorry about pushing you hard."

The guitarist waved this away. "No, no, it's okay. I know I have to get this right. The pressure was unbearable in that room though. You were all looking at me expectantly, and it just made me mess up even more. It's my fault."

"Dan, none of this was your fault, I promise." He'd managed to shuffle even closer to him without noticing, but the colour drained from his face as soon as he realised. Dougie quickly backed up and looked at the floor, embarrassed at his eagerness.

The elder looked at his friend. He pretended not to notice the embarrassment that Dougie tried to hide. But inside he felt astonished that he felt the need to hide it. Surely Dougie already knew that Danny had some feelings for him? The other thing was, Danny felt totally guilty for causing this trouble in the band. He wanted to make the whole experience as easy as humanely possible and get his memory back as soon as he could, but every day was a new battle and the war never seemed to end. These feelings he had for Dougie just overcomplicated things, but it felt so right. He wasn't prepared for what Dougie said next though.

"Danny, I uh…" He cleared his throat as a distraction, "I heard what you said to Tom and Harry earlier."

Sighing, Danny asked with a hand over his face, "All of it?" He blushed and grinned in spite of himself.

"Well, um, the last bit about me anyway."

There was silence, but it wasn't awkward. Dougie bit his lip, and Danny suddenly felt the urge to kiss him. The younger boy looked up, and grinned. Danny said, "It's true. All of it's true. I loved being with you last night."

Dougie smiled the most massive smile the other boy had ever seen. It seemed to radiate warmth, and it made his face even more beautiful. "I… well… I loved being with you too."

Danny saw his moment, and tried to seize it. He shuffled closer to him, under the pretence of removing a stray eyelash from his cheek, and slowly leaned his face closer. The younger boy blushed, and before he could stop himself, began to lean closer at the same time. Their lips were barely centimetres away and they could each feel the other's breath tickling their skin. "Dougie…I-"

The door clicked open, and Harry's face peered in. Before he could see anything, both boys had separated and were blushing furiously. Danny cleared his throat and Dougie said in a squeaky voice, "Wassup Harry?"

Harry narrowed his eyes suspiciously. He ignored the scene before him and said instead, "Tom thinks you need some practice answering interview questions Dan. Whenever you're ready…"

"Thanks mate." Danny said, his face returning to its normal colour.

The drummer didn't leave though, so the embarrassed boys stood up, quickly shared a smile; then left the room, and the moment behind.

* * *

**Weeeeeell?**

**Ya know how it goes...**

**Thanks people. :D**

**xxx  
**


	7. The Failure

**Ooooh 'ello, I'm back from the dead!**

**Just kidding. But seriously though, this has taken me literally years, because I pretty much forgot about it.  
I'm back on it now though, i swear. :)**

**Thanks to everyone who has reviewed so far, and badgered me relentlessly to keep writing. Without you people, this chapter would never have existed!**

**In this chapter we have the introduction of one of my favourite people in the world, Giovanna Falcone. She's lovely :)  
Tom is a lucky, lucky man.**

**Please enjoy...  
**

* * *

As the band gathered in the living room once again, they saw that Tom had set up a few dining chairs in an interview-type fashion, facing an invisible camera. "Wasn't interrupting anything, was I?" Tom asked with a cheeky grin. Harry smirked knowingly, and the blond raised an eyebrow questioningly. Danny ignored them.

"What's this?" He asked, motioning toward the chairs.

Directing his attention to the furniture, Dougie looked equally as puzzled. Tom shook his head, unable to believe they didn't recognise the setup. "Come on guys, look! It's a pretend interview. I want to see how well Danny reacts under pressure."

"We already know I don't react well under pressure." Danny said, "It's no good."

Refusing to get angry, Tom replied, "I'm gonna teach you the answers to some of our more frequently asked questions. Don't panic." Then he gave him a warm smile as reassurance.

Harry looked confused for a second, and he started muttering under his breath. His eyebrows knitted in concentration, and he finally asked, "Tom, why are there five chairs?" He counted five chairs out loud then said, "There are only four of us, you doofus!"

Tom looked awkward for a second. "Well uh…"

The doorbell rang, and everyone looked at Tom with accusatory expressions before he scuttled out of the room to answer it.

Dougie tutted loudly, and Danny felt nervous. Who was at the door? Would they expect him to know who they were? So many questions, but they faded from initial thought as a young woman stepped in the room. She was about Tom's age, and had long, brown, curly hair. Her skin was slightly olive-tinted, and he guessed that from her overall appearance she was part-Italian. She was pretty, but not in an artificial way. Her make-up was simple; it enhanced her natural beauty.

Harry grinned at her in welcome, and Dougie hugged her tightly. Then she smiled brightly in Danny's direction and said, "Hey Dan! How're you doing?"

"I… uhh…" Danny started, and she pulled him into a bear hug.

Suddenly, he saw a flash of images, stronger than ever, move across his shut eyelids. Her face was beaming in every single one of them, and he understood her familiarity, even though he still didn't know entirely who she was. He pulled away, and she looked hurt and confused.

"Danny..?"

Tom pulled her gently away, and held her hand delicately. Then he said quietly, "Danny's still not well Gio. He's on his way, but… not yet."

She looked disappointed, and like she was ready to burst into tears. "Oh I'm so sorry honey! You must have been so freaked out when I walked in and just hugged you like that." Now there really were tears brimming in her eyes, and Tom clutched her hand tighter. "I'm so sorry you're not better yet, you're like a brother to me."

Gio wiped her eyes, and Dougie rubbed her back slowly in a calming manner. "Dan, this is…" he began, but Gio sniffled and stopped him.

"No, let me. Danny, I'm Giovanna. Giovanna Falcone; Tom's girlfriend." She stuck out her hand for Danny to shake, but he was hesitant to accept. This girl seemed nice enough, but he couldn't remember to what extent he liked her. Was she as close to him as she said she was? Danny decided to give Gio the benefit of the doubt. With this in mind, he did shake hands, and she smiled warmly.

For a little while there was quiet, other than Tom talking softly to Giovanna. Dougie observed them with what Danny thought to be jealousy; but then he realised he felt exactly the same.

A terrible thought smacked Danny in the face in that exact moment. His surprise must have shown, because Tom asked worriedly, "Danny, what's wrong?"

"Uh…" He swallowed, not wanting to hear the answer to his question. "I… I don't have a girlfriend, do I?" Dougie snorted with laughter, and Danny shot him an evil look.

Tom smiled gently and said, "No Danny, you don't. You haven't had a girlfriend for nearly a year now."

"Okay then. Harry, do you have a girlfriend?" He asked, turning to the drummer.

He grinned widely, and Gio did the same. "Yeah I do. She's called Izzy."

All of a sudden, Danny felt incredibly lonely. Dougie obviously didn't mind not having a girlfriend, but he did. He wanted to have the security that Tom and Gio had, but at the same time, a _girl_ didn't really appeal to him. He found his eyes drawn to Dougie again, for what must have been the hundredth time that hour, and wondered whether he could drag him away to actually kiss this time. Obviously, Dougie was feeling the same.

"Look Tom, is this going to take long? I have some uh… unfinished business I need to take care of." He shuffled and looked at his feet while his face turned a conspicuous shade of crimson.

Harry started laughing. "Dougie, what the hell? It sounds like you're in a James Bond Film or something!" Then he began to do his terrible impression of Sean Connery, "'I have shome unfinished bishnesh to attend to.' See?" He continued to laugh, but everyone else in the room just cringed at his impression.

Ignoring Harry who was still chuckling to himself, Tom replied with an eyebrow raised, "We won't be long, but what are you so desperate to do? You've been twitchy all morning."

"None of your beeswax," Dougie muttered.

"Now that's sorted," Tom said with glee, "Danny, please take your seat. I'll _try_ to make this as painless as possible."

Danny gulped. He was more nervous than he thought, and as he sat down, he took a deep breath. This was going to be difficult.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

A couple of hours later, Danny sat on his chair, rocking. "No more Tom, please! I get it, can we stop now?" He pleaded. His hair was messed up where he'd kept grabbing it, and he was a pitiful sight.

Gio had a hand over her forehead and she smiled at Danny sympathetically. "Tom, come on, he's done so well. Everybody's obviously tired; I think we should stop." She rubbed Tom's arm with her other hand in a loving manner, and Danny felt jealous again. He could see himself and Dougie in that place.

It was wrong in a way; Danny didn't feel good for having these thoughts about Dougie, because for some reason, he still felt that the younger boy didn't like him in the same way. Even though he was happy to kiss him, Danny still felt responsible for possibly pushing Dougie into it. After all, he was a couple of years younger, and though it seemed stupid, it was possible that Dougie was just following along, allured by curiosity.

These thoughts still didn't distract Danny from visions of Dougie floating constantly through his mind. These weren't the visions from his lost memory though; they were purely figments of his own imagination.

"Tom looked resigned, but still desperate to continue. "Okay," he sighed, "Let's stop. I want you to keep running over those questions and answers in the mirror though." He said seriously, with his eyebrows raised.

Over on their chairs, Harry and Dougie had fallen asleep. The younger had his head buried in the chest of the elder, and Danny had only just noticed this.

"Awwwh, don't they just look so cute?" Gio squealed, clapping her hands softly in excitement, and then leaving the room casually to get a snack from the kitchen.

Danny folded his arms, and gave Harry a look that would have melted lead. "No, they don't." He said, deliberately loudly, and both boys began to stir.

"Stop acting like a kid Danny. I've seen you do the same to Harry _and_ Dougie. Or…"

His eyes widened, and Danny blushed bright red. "It's not-"

"Oh Danny it so is! You like him, don't you?" Tom laughed, and he folded his arms authoritatively.

"I- uh… no!" He said with a defensive tone, but still grinned.

Tom shook his head. He couldn't believe it. "Danny, this is exactly like before! We're getting closer to you coming back to us!" He said, being emphatic with his hand movements.

Danny looked puzzled. "Mate, what are you talking about?"

"Before the accident, we all knew you liked Dougie in more than a… uhm… best friend sort of way. You know, you kissed him on stage all the time and we were just waiting for the day when you two finally got together. But then… well, you know what happened next." Tom said finally, and he smiled sympathetically.

He was getting timed of seeing that smile. "It's probably just that I'm gonna like him, whether I'm brain-damaged or not." Danny said miserably while staring longingly at the peaceful, sleeping boy.

Gio came back in the room just then with a half-eaten cookie. She was munching happily; but then she took in the atmosphere, swallowed thickly and asked, "Why the long faces, eh? What did I miss?"

"Nothing Gi," Tom said with layers of affection, pulled her close, and then kissed her tenderly on the forehead. She grinned, completely forgetting the situation. The blond boy winked at Danny.

Then, Dougie rubbed his eyes sleepily and woke up slowly from his nap. Danny couldn't help but grin, and Tom, seeing the look on Danny's face, grinned even more. "…What?" Dougie asked groggily as he noticed his band mates were looking unusually happy.

"Danny's just admiring your beauty," Tom said, giving Gio a smile.

Gio grinned like a maniac, "Well we all know he's bloody gorgeous, eh?" She giggled, and Tom winked at her secretively.

"You guys are nuts." Dougie mumbled as he stretched his body out of sleep. As he lifted his arms, Danny watched a strip of pale stomach become exposed from under a creased shirt. He was hypnotised by the snail trail that went down, down…

"Danny?" Tom barked, waking him from his daydream.

"Mhmm?" He was a bit peeved, but as he casually turned back to look at Dougie, the view was gone, and instead the young man was staring him down.

Tom looked at the large clock mounted on the wall meaningfully, then addressed Danny. "Don't you think you should be getting to sleep?"

Danny looked sceptical. "Mate, it's barely ten!"

"I don't think you understand me here. We have to be out, in the car, at five a.m. tomorrow." Tom pressed his hands into the small of Danny's back and gently pushed in the direction of his bedroom. "Also, you need as much sleep as you can get. We can rehearse quickly in the morning!"

"But-" Danny started, and then had to stifle a yawn.

"I SAW THAT MR. JONES. Go on, get to bed. We'll tidy up." Tom said with a smile, and gestured for Danny to leave.

Danny opened his mouth to argue, but on seeing the look on Tom's face, decided against it. He shuffled into his room to get changed, and settled on his bed to relax for a while.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Finally, Danny heard the front door shut for the last time. He'd lain across his bed for half an hour listening to the banging and hushed talk from just outside his door. He still felt like an outsider in the group; he didn't remember any inside jokes, any good memories had been lost and he was a different person. He could sense that in the way the others talked to him.

Quite sure that everyone had left, Danny cracked open the door just a touch. Glancing around, he saw that the furniture was back where it belonged, and Tom had even wiped all the surfaces down. He felt a rush of gratitude for him then, and felt terrible about any previous negative thoughts.

He settled on a sofa and barely had time to slump before someone knocked on the door. Feeling ever so slightly cautious and remembering he was famous, Danny approached the door on tiptoe, hoping he didn't creak any of the real-wood floorboards. When he got there, he noticed a peephole. Thanking god he didn't have to open the door first, he peeked through and his heart stopped.

On the other side of the door was Dougie. He looked nervous. Danny spun round and rested on the door, taking a deep breath and shutting his eyes momentarily. Then, Dougie knocked again. Danny's heart skipped a beat, and shyly he grasped the door handle and opened.

For a couple of seconds, both men stared at each other in awkward silence. They were alone; truly alone for the first time since the night before.

"I…" Dougie began, but stopped when Danny shook his head.

"Shh, don't talk." He swept Dougie into his arms and kissed him fully on the lips. His stomach exploded with butterflies and his knees nearly buckled when Dougie placed his hand on the back of Danny's head and gently entwined his fingers in loose curls. They stayed that way for a while, until Danny began to get a splitting headache.

"Agh!" He cried, letting go of a concerned Dougie, who watched as the older boy clasped his head in agony.

"Danny," he said calmly, "Are you okay?" He reached out a hand to comfort him with, but Danny only flinched.

He sunk to the floor, still clutching his head and riding the waves of pain as they came. Images flashed past his vision of Dougie smiling, laughing, and grinning in a sexy way. Each was more vivid than the last, and suddenly, they stopped. This was the most prominent flashback yet, but still, he did not feel right. He let go of his pounding skull, and he felt tears well in his eyes.

"Danny?" Dougie asked again, becoming more and more worried. "Are you… do you remember me again?"

Danny stood up. "No," he choked. "I'm… I'm so sorry. Dougie, I thought that would help me remember you. But it didn't, it didn't." Then he began to cry. He sobbed into his arm until Dougie took him in his arms and did his best to comfort him.

"It's okay Dan. It's not the end of the world is it?" He whispered soothingly, but Danny only seemed to react negatively to the comment.

"What if it is? I mean, I'm never going to get better am I? We've tried everything and I can't do this to you anymore Dougie, I just can't." He buried his head into Dougie's neck and mumbled, "I just love you too much."

"Danny, don't be stupid." He muttered, "We can work through this. I know we can. We love each other now, and that's enough, right?"

Danny sniffled, opened his mouth to speak, but shook his head in a dismissive way.

Dougie sighed. "You need to sleep." He sounded dejected and let down, but Danny couldn't sympathise or empathise. His head was throbbing in a nasty way. All he did was nod, keeping his eyes focused on anywhere but Dougie's face.

The young boy didn't know where to look. He rubbed his sandy hair, feeling out of place, and reached for the door. He hesitated, just for a while.

"We'll find it Danny. I promise you, we'll find that trigger even if… even if it kills me." He looked as if he was going to say something else, but decided not to. He was out of the door before Danny even had a chance to reply.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Needless to say, Danny didn't sleep very much that night. He stared at the luminous red numbers on his alarm clock until they read 01:46, and then he drifted off into a nightmarish sleep, in which Dougie cried endlessly, and he himself was locked into a tiny cage and laughed at by faceless people.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

Tom knocked on the bedroom door at four a.m. sharp. A rumpled looking guitarist opened the door and yawned in his face.

"You ready?" Tom asked with obvious trepidation.

Danny shook his head just once before bursting into hysteric, fitful tears.

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**I'm dying to know what you think.**

**Hope this wasn't too much of a let down... ;D  
**


	8. The Promo

**Well knock me down with a feather... it's been a long time.**

**I'm now at the Uni of Hull, studying English Lit and Creative Writing :)  
I love it so much. But it doesn't leave me with much time for writing fanfiction...**

**I want to say thank you especially to 'kylie', because a while ago she went through all my fics and totally spazzed over them :')  
This chapter's for you darling, and it sucks you don't have an account, because I'd love to reply to all your reviews!**

**Thanks to everyone else, who, during this odd time, has reviewed or faved any of my other fics, or this one :)**

**Please enjoy!  
**

* * *

Danny drifted in and out of conscious thought as he sat in the back seat of the McFly van. Tom was assisting the roadies with loading up various instruments and equipment, while Dougie and Harry murmured to each other within earshot.

The topic, obviously, was Danny and his messed up brain. He pulled his jacket tighter around his torso, and felt a wave of guilt about what happened with Dougie the night before. He was a dick to the poor guy, and he desperately wanted to make it up to him.

Then, the boot door was slammed, and the rest of the band members clambered in around him, making Danny feel a more than a little claustrophobic. The tension mounted in the tiny space, until it was hard to breathe. Everyone seemed to be avoiding making eye contact with Danny, and he felt like jumping out of the van as soon as it got moving. This, he thought, was suspicious. Before, they had been eager to involve him in conversation and make him feel welcome. Now it felt much like the opposite.

"Is there something you guys aren't telling me?" Danny asked tentatively, but his voice still seemed to echo in the silence. The only noise for a little while was the hum of the new engine.

Dougie cleared his throat, Tom looked away, and Harry shuffled uncomfortably in his seat. Eventually, he spoke. "Well, Tom neglected to tell you something about today…"

Tom shot Harry an evil look, but sighed. "Danny, I told our manager, Fletch, that you were better. It's the only reason he let us do this promo." It was said very quickly, and silence fell again all too easily, for a few minutes.

"And he didn't think to verify this in any way?"

The blond shook his head, feeling nauseous. "He assumes that I always tell the truth. I did, actually, before all this. I wouldn't have jeopardized the future of the band for anything."

Danny kept quiet for a while. Yet again, his influence had stuck a knife between the cogs that kept the machine -the band- alive. He hid his face behind large hands and made a sound almost like a laugh, but more desperate. "I don't know how much more of this I can take!" The statement was muffled, yet hung in the air like a nasty smell.

The van was set up so that the back seats were all facing each other. Tom was sat opposite Harry, and Dougie opposite Danny. Dougie put a hand on Danny's knee, as a comforting gesture. "We can do this, Dan! Think about all the practice we've put in- you would _never_ be this prepared normally!"

Harry sniggered. "That's true, actually."

Even Tom cracked a smile, though his expression was still pensive, and it didn't quite reach his eyes.

"We need to at least try, Danny." Dougie now said quietly, watching Danny's face with careful consideration. He made eye contact, and then smiled in a way that melted Danny's anxiety somewhat, and gave him a rush of new-found confidence. "Just… be confident with Fletch; he won't notice anything's wrong, I promise."

Danny just nodded. Despite his burst of adrenaline, he still felt rather sick. In his warped memory, he could no longer remember being in front of a television camera, and the fact that the ordeal was _live_ certainly didn't help his nerves. The FAQs that Tom had gone through with him the previous day seemed to have leaked temporarily from Danny's mind, and that terrified him more than anything else.

After a short while, Tom jerked his head at one of the windows on his side. "We're here." He said dismissively, more to himself than anyone else.

The van swung into a wide car park and pulled up in front of the main building. Satellite dishes were scattered around like giant bowls, and a nervous-looking man stood in anticipation of the van with his hands thrust deeply into the pockets of his trousers. He raised one palm in greeting as the van came to a stop, and as soon as the doors opened, Tom pasted a sickly smile onto his face.

"Hey guys, how are we feeling today?" Fletch asked brightly, but Danny noticed him wringing his hands. A nervous tic, obviously.

Anxious to put the man at ease, Danny answered, "Mate, really well, actually, so there's no need to panic!" He gave his manager a good whack on the shoulder to accompany his remark, and a large Danny-grin, just to be sure. Dougie and Harry nodded appreciatively at Danny's gesture, and Tom even smirked.

Fletch broke out in a relieved smile, and bear-hugged Danny with vigour. "I'm so pleased you're back, man. Things haven't been the same without you." Finally, he let go, and Danny felt even worse than he had done before. He felt hollow; as if someone had scooped out his insides, including his heart. This whole act felt entirely heartless, and the troubled man was on the verge of spilling the truth until he saw Tom's face again, wracked with worry, and gaze focused unintentionally on a protruding concrete slab in the ground.

Danny, still watching Tom cautiously, replied, "Yeah… yeah, things have been tough. I worked through them though, with the help of my best mates, and I honestly can't thank them enough." Tom didn't respond, but continued to stare at the ground, seemingly without blinking.

"Ahhh Dan-Dan, that's so sweet!" Harry cooed, with an effeminate inflection to his voice. He hugged the man who _still _had dreadful amnesia, and Dougie copied the action with a nervous giggle.

"Okay, okay, come on now. You children are already late into make-up!" Fletch flapped his hands at Dougie and Harry, and then ushered them into wide automatic doors. As he walked away from Danny, he turned his head back, winked, and added, "Seriously, I'm so glad you're okay. This band needs you." Fletch followed the two immature band members through the massive doors, without waiting for a response.

In spite of himself, Danny grinned. He turned to Tom, and motioned toward the entrance. "Come on mate, it's now or never, right?"

But to his surprise, and horror, Tom sank to the ground and retched. He murmured something, but from where he was standing, Danny couldn't hear a word of it. His brain seemed to be draining out of his ears, and his feet were stuck to the ground as he tried to get to his suffering friend. Eventually, he stumbled into his vicinity and tripped, knee hitting the ground with incredible, numbing force. Tears threatened to burst from their ducts, and he bit his lip to stop a gasp of pain in its tracks.

"I… can't do it anymore. This whole… this _thing_ is killing me." Tom looked up with pitiful, empty eyes and his face creased as he burst into fitful tears. The arms that were supporting him shook, and as he curled them into his stomach, Danny felt his chin wobble and throat tighten. He choked on sorrow for his friend, as well as anger with himself for not being competent enough to deal with his own problems. Tom cried even more in the safety of his upright foetal position, and Danny felt, with absolute, unshakeable finality, that he was the worst person in the world.

Another thing Danny noticed in Tom's sudden breakdown was how _frail_ the blond had become. As he shook in his crouched position, Danny took a chance to properly look at his friend. Taking the prominent chin in one loose fist, he pulled Tom's face toward his own.

"When was the last time you ate, Tom? I mean, properly ate?" As an afterthought, he added, "And don't lie to me, because this is important."

Tom hiccupped, wiped his nose on a jacket sleeve, and replied slowly, "I don't know… maybe, a couple of days ago?"

Danny let go of his chin with an aggravated sigh and ran a hand through his own hair. "Fuck, Tom!" He stood up and whirled around, willing himself not to get angry. It wasn't his fault, by any means; in fact, it was Danny's fault. He knew that, without a shadow of a doubt.

Tom glanced up at him with trepidation. He'd started shivering, and was once again resting two hands on the ground to support his torso. The glassy brown eyes were watery and distant, and he was pleading silently for forgiveness. "Danny, you don't understand… the pressure… I've never known anything like it. I can't _deal_ with it anymore."

The curly haired brunet remained silent. He couldn't do anything, except rest one shaking hand on his mouth, and the other on his hip.

"I… I haven't been able to think about anything else, Danny. New ideas on how to make you better, this promo we're meant to be doing… it's all got on top of me. I'm so sorry." He shook some more, and stared once again at Danny with muddy, pitiful eyes.

Without a word, Danny dropped to his knees to hug his friend tightly, sucking back a heaving sob. He couldn't think of anything to say; how could he, in the circumstance? All he could do was hold the somehow shivering frame of his strongest friend, and choke on words he felt he didn't have the right to say.

"I can't do it."

"Tom, don't be ridiculous. We have to do this." Danny rubbed his hand with the other, and watched his friend with wide, frightened eyes. He didn't know how to motivate the blond.

It happened so quickly, Danny could only open his mouth in shock. Tom scrambled to his feet, fists clenched, and glared at Danny with what could only be described as pure hatred. "We have to go on National television in ONE HOUR. I have to LIE. To the whole of this fucking country, I have to LIE. Do you know what that's going to do to me?"

"I… No. I'm sorry Tom, seriously."

"SORRY? Oh Christ Danny, 'sorry' does not even COVER it." He threw both hands to his scalp and harshly pulled the natural blond hair, until the strain showed in his eyes. He let go with a sigh, and laughed gently, in a dreadfully ironic way. "Even when I was tiny I knew I wanted to be in a band, Danny." He stared into the brunet's sorrowful eyes. "It's just so hard to watch it all fall apart."

Danny could only open and close his mouth like some sort of retarded fish, and hope for the ground to swallow him up. His stomach felt knotted with guilt.

Tom looked as if he might say something else, but instead, turned to the floor, sniffed, and walked past Danny into the television centre without another word.

A wave of nausea passed over the boy still standing in the car park, and he bent double to relieve the urge into a nearby bush. Fighting back more threatening sobs, he brushed a shaking hand across his mouth and staggered into the intimidating building, determined to make the best of this, for Tom's sake.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

The lights were much too bright, and much too hot.

Someone with an annoying, screechy voice shouted in his earpiece.

Three huge cameras focused on his face at the same time.

A countdown; ten… nine…

"LIGHTS!"

"Check!"

Six… five…

"CAMERAS?"

"Checkity-check!"

Three… two…

"ACTION!"

Danny's hands shook as a camera swung to his left, and sweat was already trailing down his back. Dougie gave him a wink, and finally his sweaty fingers found the right chords.

Astonishingly, the moment they all began playing in unison, something fell into place in Danny's mind. It all felt _right_, as if, they'd been doing this all their lives. He didn't have to concentrate on where his fingers were, because the song came back to him in a rush of notes and vibrato.

Tom, who had been expecting disaster, couldn't hide his shocked expression as Danny played his solo perfectly, and worked hard to suppress a grin when the boy with new-found confidence, jumped on one of the fake amps in his typical frontman way.

As the song ended, Danny punched the air with visible relief. Harry collapsed over his drum kit, while Dougie and Tom high-fived each other triumphantly.

Behind the camera, a man with a headset ushered the still-dazed boys to a long sofa, opposite another identical one where the two show-hosts were seated. They welcomed the boys with huge grins, and the pretty brunette clapped enthusiastically.

"That was the amazing McFly, with their new single, 'Down Goes Another One'!" The older man said, with an enthusiasm that seemed to have rubbed off on him from the boys. "Take a seat, take a seat!"

The four band members lined up obediently on the sofa, and Danny was still shaking with adrenaline. Dougie beamed at him, while Tom clapped him on the back.

"Well, you're obviously happy about your performance boys, and rightfully so! I think the audience loved it too; am I right?"

A huge cheer erupted from the audience, complete with screams and wolf-whistles, which just made the boys, smile even more.

The brunette flashed the band a smile before asking, "So, guys, do you mind telling me where the inspiration for this song came from?"

All eyes focused on Tom, as he began, "Well…"

"Actually, it all started with a much earlier song." Harry stared open-mouthed at Danny, who had answered without apparently even knowing it. He seemed amazed at himself, and Tom only nodded in his direction to continue with the explanation.

The story spilled out of his mouth as easily as water, but it felt alien to him, like another language. "We had a song on our 'Wonderland' album called 'She Falls Asleep', which Tom wrote." He motioned with a thumb to his friend. "That song is pretty depressing, as it's about a girl who kills herself, after obsessing over this guy. 'Down Goes Another One' is sort of the sequel to that story, because the 'you' in 'She Falls Asleep', is the guy from whose perspective this song is written. It was all Dougie's idea. He was the genius behind it." He grinned madly at the quiet band member, who smiled sheepishly with a considerably red face.

"Ahhh so little Dougie was the quiet mastermind behind this one!" The older man encouraged him to elaborate on his own ideas.

"Yeah, well, like Danny said, the main perspective of this song is from the guy, and he feels a lot of regret over this girl. He sees her everywhere, and talks to her all the time, but still, he can't get over the fact he lost her. There's a lot of guilt, too." He smiled awkwardly at Danny, as if to address him, this time. "He just wants her to know he's sorry, and that he would turn back time, if even given half the chance."

Danny fell into a little bubble-world in that moment and all background noise dissolved into fuzz as he stared into Dougie's eyes. He gave a sort of half-smirk and swallowed thickly, trying not to choke on live television.

The brunette gave the pair a sideways glance, as if sensing the tension, but addressed Tom with another question. He answered with ease, and a precision he'd become accustomed to.

The last of the interview carried on without a hitch, except for Danny appearing to have been knocked for six by Dougie's blatant stab at an apology on national television. Not that he had anything to apologise for, and that's what confused Danny the most. Did he have an ulterior motive?

Before Danny could truly slip into a coma, the interview was over, and the band was escorted back to their dressing room by a very excited young girl, who blushed and ran away when Harry thanked her with a kiss on the cheek.

With the door safely shut, Tom punched a nearby sofa triumphantly, and landed a huge kiss on Danny's bewildered face. "You are amazing, Danny Jones. How the hell did you remember all that stuff about the song? I didn't even tell you any of that!"

The Northerner scratched his head with a grin and shrugged his shoulders. "I honestly don't know. It just… it was just _there_. You know?"

"No, not really dude, but all I know is, that was so convincing!" Harry said, and gave Danny a playful punch on the shoulder. "You really rocked it. Nobody would have guessed that you still have amnesia."

Dougie glanced at him with a suddenly panicked expression. "Harry, shut up! Or, Christ, at least keep it down. I can hear people moving around out there." He motioned to the door with a shake of his head, but he slammed a hand to his mouth as he realised it was already opening.

Tom gasped. He knew who the mystery intruder would be, even before he saw the tell-tale shoe step over the threshold…

* * *

**Thanks muchly for reading :)**

**I'm writing the next chapter now...  
It's likely to be the last one, so, everything will become clear ;)  
**


	9. The Fallout

**Ooohhhh I am horrific, aren't I?  
****Well, babies, it has been over a year since the last chapter, and there aren't enough words to apologise for that. This is a loooong chapter though, so please don't hate me too much :)  
**

**Also, I have to say, you guys are incredible. Every other day I get notifications of reviews, faves or alerts, so I want to thank every single person who took the time to read my story. I bet you thought it would never be finished...**

**The time has come. Officially, this is the last chapter, but I WILL be writing an epilogue at some point**. **We'll probably have flying cars by the time it's published...**

**I'll probably stick to oneshots in the future, or write the whole story before publishing any of it!**

**Anyway, thank you so much, again. I wouldn't keep writing if I didn't have lovely people like you giving me praise and helpful criticism left, right and centre!**

* * *

Danny felt his stomach drop into an unknown pit, somewhere in the lower regions of his body. Time seemed to slow down; and even when the door slammed into a wall with the force it was opened with, he couldn't quite focus on what was happening.

Fletch stood, fists clenched, in the doorway. His face was redder and angrier than Tom had ever seen it, and an ominous silence hung in the air for a while as everybody processed the situation and its possible outcomes.

An accusing finger pointed at Danny. "You still have amnesia?"

The question was spoken in a calm voice, but it completely contrasted the shaking of Fletch's hand.

Danny nodded slowly, and then gulped. He was suddenly aware that he wasn't breathing enough. Sweat poured down his back.

"Fletch, mate, it was completely my fault-"

Tom was interrupted with the other hand. It was lowered, and the manager's attention once again remained solely on Danny. "You went on National, LIVE Television; even though you knew perfectly well that you were still ill? Am I hearing this right?"

The Northerner remained silent. He nodded again, stupidly, as if the sound of his voice would make his manager explode in a fit of fury.

Dougie and Harry were stunned to the spot. They were waiting for the lecture, the rant, which they knew would come soon, but for now, they tried to remain as invisible as possible. Dougie personally was working with the idea that Fletch's vision relied on movement. As long as he stayed right where he was, he couldn't be seen.

But then, Fletch's vision became panoramic, as he surveyed the room. Each guilty face before him just made his blood boil even more. "You all lied to me then, right?"

Harry motioned a kind of nod with his head, but then stopped as he realised Dougie was frantically shaking his head in his general direction.

Tom decided to speak up. "Yeah, okay, we lied. But it was only out of desperation, Fletch. Surely you can understand that?"

"No, you absolute TWAT. I can't understand it for a SECOND. All of our jobs are at risk, and, for fuck's sake Tom, I thought you were smarter than that."

If Fletch had enough hair, he certainly would be tearing it out at this point. Instead, he sat in the chair nearest Harry, and rested his head on open palms.

Danny made eye-contact with Tom, and the blond shrugged in response. None of McFly wanted to say a word, in case the situation was made worse. Not that it could be worse, Danny thought.

The room felt tight and constricting on Tom's chest for a while. It had been a long time since he'd felt failure – real failure – and this was as bad as it could get. Apologies weren't enough. Putting jobs at risk on National Television was serious business.

"I… I don't know what we were thinking."

"Obviously you fucking _weren't_." Fletch still had his head to the floor. He refused, obviously, to make eye contact with any of the boys.

Tom turned to Danny. "This isn't your fault mate; do you wanna get back to the van? We'll be there soon."

"No. He stays. You all stay." It looked as if Fletch was speaking to the floor, but none of the boys dared move after that.

Silence, for a while, and the only noise was that of an enraged manager clicking his knuckles. He was thinking. Tom was familiar with this pose.

"I said one month."

"What do you mean?" Harry asked Fletch, giving Dougie a sideways baffled look.

"Tom, remember at the hospital when Danny first woke up? You rang me. I said you have one month. One month to make him better."

"Fletch, please…"

"No, listen to me! Do you understand how happy I was, when I was led to believe Danny was better? It meant this band could be _saved_. I didn't want to have to do this."

Danny understood the meaning of his last phrase. "Wait, are you saying..?"

"Yeah. I quit."

The whole band remained stunned as Fletch stood up, spun his chair and tucked it neatly under the dressing table. Dougie opened his mouth, but before he could speak, his eyes welled up with tears. Fletch rested against the table with his arms folded.

"I can't deal with you anymore. Being the band you are, finding a new manager should be a snap."

"We don't want anyone else! Please, you can't do this to us." Tom was almost begging now. "Without you, McFly doesn't exist. If you leave us now… well… that's the end."

Danny sank to the floor and watched his friends crumble from the inside. Harry's arms were shaking in an effort to support his clenched fists, and Dougie was silently crying. Just watching his chin wobble was enough to make Danny's eyes sting.

The whole world dropped into slow motion again.

Fletch, their manager, their rock, stepped towards the door. Tom made a last-ditch attempt to grab his arm, but Fletch shook it off. Words were spoken, but they must have been spoken through cotton wool because Danny didn't register anything he recognised. As their ex-manager finally left the room, Tom whirled (still in slow motion) and punched the wall nearest him. He cried out in agony, but nobody paid any attention.

Band: McFly.

Time of Death: 11:34 A.M.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

It had been nearly a month since the incident with Fletch, and McFly's new single Down Goes Another One had been released anyway. Then came the promotional silence that fans were accustomed to between singles, and nothing seemed to be out of the ordinary. Not one band member mentioned the irony in the song title that stared them in the face every day, but they all felt the pain of separation.

That's not to say there weren't rumours, however. On the band's official forum, fans started to panic as Danny failed to update his Twitter account, and Tom didn't mention a word about rehearsals or the band. Any questions that were asked were suspiciously ignored, and soon, poisonous rumours spread to the media.

The one person most affected by the whole incident, Danny, sat alone in his house most days. He stopped answering the door after a week, even to his own mother, and since then, nobody bothered to visit at all. He thanked God for shopping deliveries, which supplied him with precious reserves of expensive whisky and high-calorie ready meals. His whole diet went to shit, but frankly, he didn't give a flying one.

One dreary Monday, after a particularly terrible episode of Come Dine With Me, the doorbell rang. Danny had almost forgotten what it sounded like, so it had gone off several more times before he finally got up to check through the peep-hole.

It was Tom. He had black circles under his eyes, and Danny had never seen him so thin. Tom's once carefully bleached hair was now mousy and unkempt, and the hoodie/jacket ensemble made him look astonishingly like a homeless person. It was a relatively good day in the scheme of things, so Danny opened the door.

"Danny! Oh Dan, oh Christ, I was _terrified_ that you were dead!"

"Remembered I was here, did you?" Danny's voice was hard, stoic.

Tom looked as if he might cry. He tangled his fingers and creased his face in a truly guilty manner. "I'm so sorry I didn't come sooner! I had… well… issues of my own that needed to be sorted, and God, I didn't stop thinking about you the whole time. Mate, please, forgive me?"

The younger man stood for a while, then, leaving the door open, he walked toward the stairs. With a jerk of the head, Danny motioned at Tom to come in. "Shut the door behind you, yeah?"

Tom nodded frantically, slammed the door, and skipped up the stairs with the exuberance of a ten year-old.

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

A few hours later, the boys were slouched against the wall of a spare bedroom, with their chins digging into their chests, and a bottle of Jack Daniels perched between them. It was nearly empty. Danny took a swig, then passed it to Tom. He held it for a moment, looking somewhat zoned out, and spoke with confidence.

"Did you know, my friend, that I kinda… well… I had our futures planned out. Our distant futures, anyway. You know, after the age of forty or so. Dougie would find a middle-aged pop punk band like Green Day and play amazing bass guitar for huge crowds the size of Wembley Stadium. Harry, well, he'd refuse to age, and just have epic yacht parties with his increasingly younger Brazilian wives."

Danny laughed at this; it was a perfect example of the imagination he loved in his best friend.

Tom carried on with more enthusiasm, and an occasional wave of the bottle. "I… I would write songs for the new popular bands. The ones lost in a sea of confusing contracts and bullying record companies. I just wanna _help_, you know? But your picture, your story was the clearest of all to me. You, still at the height of your game would suddenly retire, leaving everyone wanting more! But you know what I see you doing? I see you teaching young kids, tiny ones, to play the guitar just like you; as well as you, and as passionately as you. They'll look at you with their massive eyes and say, 'Danny? You are my _hero_.'"

"Mate, I couldn't be anyone's hero. Let alone a role model for a tiny kid! Look at me, Tom. I'm just a burnout now." Danny downed the last few gulps of whisky and tried to get up. It was unsuccessful, and Tom just stared him out with soulful eyes.

"Listen, you know you could still do anything you wanted to do. Anything. You know it, and I know it. You're _Danny Jones_! Millions of people would kill to just touch you; you know that as well as I do."

Danny shook his head mournfully. "This is it. I'm destined for I'mACelebrity or StrictlyComeDancing. You know what's the worst thing? I won't even be able to _remember_ why I became famous in the first place. It's alright being a Z-lister and knowing you've accomplished something in your life that you're proud of. All I know is that I had a terrible accident and I'm mentally and emotionally scarred for life."

Tom remained quiet and chewed on his lip. Danny stared into the middle distance and felt the alcohol toxins invade his brain; they made his eyes fuzzy, but worst of all, he felt sick.

"You know Dan," Tom said with a sly grin, "At least you won't remember the absolutely horrendous covers we did…"

"Like what?"

"Erm… Don't Stop Me Now, Ghostbusters, Pinball Wizard…"

Danny groaned and slammed his hands to his forehead. "You are kidding me?"

Tom shook his head slowly. "I wish I was. There's plenty more, too."

"Fuck me. And I haven't even got any more alcohol to soak up this horrible feeling that I've pissed off a few million people."

The blond considered his friend's problem, and soon enough, an idea struck. "Come to the pub with me and the other two. It'll do you good to get out of the house."

Danny's slight smile was wiped from his face, and all colour drained immediately. He shook his head. Slowly, at first, but gaining speed until he stood up and walked towards the door. Turning back to his friend, he said, "I can't, Tom. Not now. I can't see… him."

"He needs you, you know. He misses you. We all do."

Resting his head on the door, Danny slowly turned the handle. "If he… if he misses me so much, then where the fuck has he been?" He looked back at Tom with hurt eyes, and waited for a reasonable explanation.

"Come and sit down, Danny. Let me explain this to you, please?"

The brunette looked down at his friend for a while, before sighing and reassuming his place sat down against the wall. He looked at Tom expectantly. "Well?"

Tom ruffled his hair with long fingers, and scratched at his overgrown stubble. "You know how long it's been since… well, Fletch, yeah?"

Danny nodded. "About a month?"

"That's right; about a month. Do you know how long Dougie kept coming back for?"

Danny shook his head slowly, feeling more sober by the second.

"Damn near three weeks. Three weeks, Dan. Dougie pretty much camped outside your front door, waiting for you to answer him or come out, but you didn't. In the end, I had to come and drag him away. I don't blame you for how you're feeling, or how you cope with it. I just… need you to understand that there are people in this big wide world who care a damn lot about you." Tom smiled, as if to encourage the brunette.

As Danny was still deliberating, Tom stood up, rather unsteadily. "Come on mate, get up. I need more alcohol, and so do you."

Danny stared for a while at the hand that Tom had helpfully outstretched, before grabbing it and lifting himself up with a strained noise. "Maybe I've already had too much?"

"Nonsense."

The grin that graced Tom's features reminded Danny painfully of the old days. Except for the obvious fact that the blond looked much, much slimmer now, and didn't grin nearly as often as he used to. The bags under his eyes seemed to be weighing the smiles down.

"Tom?" Danny asked as he hopped nimbly down the stairs. His question seemed more and more offensive as it rolled in his head amidst the alcohol, but he continued; "Why didn't you fight more? I mean, for the band and its longevity."

He could no longer hear the creak of stairs behind him, so he assumed his older friend had stopped. Danny almost didn't want to turn around, but he did, out of sheer curiosity, to find his ex-bandmate swaying slightly, with tears in his eyes.

Tom sniffed. "I guess I just lost my fight." He ran down the stairs, past the now-ashamed Northerner, into the cold evening air. Danny could just about make out his silhouette, drying his eyes on the sleeve of his hoodie. "Oi Jones; you coming or what?"

With a grin, the younger man reached the front door, stepped out, and locked it behind him. There wasn't anything more that needed to be said.

The walk was a fairly quick and quiet one. Both men were absorbed in their own thoughts, and the path to their local pub wasn't exactly a gruelling one. Danny felt completely at ease with Tom, and, in this moment, he felt closer to him than he could remember being before. It wasn't until he reached the front door of the pub that his lungs seized up, and he thought he might choke to death.

He turned to Tom. "I can't."

"Don't be retarded; get in there!"

Without warning, Tom flung the door open himself, and, with a firm grip on Danny's forearm, led him to a quiet booth in the far corner. There sat a grinning, muscular man with wide blue eyes, and a sandy-blond, messy-haired man with an expression of quiet shock and hurt. Not a single word was spoken for a full ten seconds, and the end of this silence was marked with the slamming of small hands on the table, and the latter of the two men storming from the room.

Harry gave Danny the most genuine smile he'd ever seen. "Dan, mate… I just, wow. I never thought you'd leave the house!"

In spite of himself, Danny grinned, still painfully aware of Dougie's exit. "Does that mean I get a hug?"

Harry flung himself upon the younger man and let out a single sob, before turning away to wipe his eyes and resume his place in the booth.

All three men stared awkwardly around the room for a while, before Tom pointed a thumb at the door through which Dougie had left. "I'd better, er, go check on Doug."

Danny opened his mouth to suggest going with him, and then thought better of it, so nodded once and turned to Harry to await the inevitable questions.

Tom left through the side door, ready for a long walk to find his missing friend, but was pleased to see he was only a few steps away. He motioned towards the cigarette with a solemn smile and muttered, "Bad for your health, that is."

Taking a final puff, Dougie threw the cigarette with more force than was necessary, then proceeded to stomp off in the direction of his house.

"Whoa, whoa, Dougie! Dude, come on, I was trying to have a laugh!"

Dougie whirled around with an ugly, incredulous look on his otherwise beautiful features. "Which part of this is funny, hmm?" He took out a packet from his pocket, and withdrew another cigarette with shaking hands. In one swift move, he lit it and took a drag. "The part where I sat outside his house for three weeks, waiting for him to answer me, but he never did? Or maybe it was the fact that YOU were the ONLY one who could make him get out of that fucking house. Saviour Tom; whoop-dee-fuckin'-doo."

Tom could only stare, mouth open and completely dumbstruck.

"Am I meant to just sit in there, listening to Martyr Danny talking about his hard times? Am I meant to appreciate his presence? You know what, Tom? I don't want to look at him; I really fucking don't."

The elder reached out for the younger, but the latter backed away instantaneously, and shook his head slowly. "Dougie, please."

"NO! I don't _need_ to feel guilty about this. I have plenty to feel guilty about, without having all this shit on me as well!"

"We all had a part to play in this."

Dougie shook his head, faster this time, and took a long drag. "No, fuck you, Tom. Bullshit."

Tom laughed darkly. "Okay then, so who was playing around with him on the night of the accident, then? Hmm? Who was he chasing?"

"Me, but-"

"Who was sober, and therefore felt responsible when one of you two got hurt on that night?"

"Harry, but-"

"No, shut up. Now who is usually the father figure, but decided to take a night off for once to let his hair down?"

"You. Alright? YOU. Fine, I get it! You know what though Tom, I'm not going back in there to let him take the fucking attention again; 'Oh _poor _Danny, poor _forgetful_ Dan', I'm not doing it!"

Tom bowed his head in thought. "He helped you."

Dougie snorted. "What a sweeping statement! Come on then, Tom, what did he help me with that you couldn't? Harry taught me to shave, and you opened my first bank account, for fuck's sake!"

"Remember those times you'd sit alone in your room and drink yourself unconscious? He always tucked you in; always checked on you to make sure you never choked on your own vomit. Then sometimes, he'd get so scared that he'd water your alcohol down so you wouldn't die from dehydration."

"Just ridiculous stuff, then, basically? Messing with my booze?"

It was Tom's turn to stare incredulously. "You think that's all it was? He would sit up at night and wait for you to stagger through the door, because he knew there'd be no one in your house to make sure you were okay! Harry and I were fucking useless, but he took care of you every, single, night."

Finally, the younger man started to look somewhat ashamed. "The funny thing is, since the accident, I haven't touched a drop of alcohol."

Tom absorbed this, but showed no outward sign of surprise. "And why's that?"

Contemplating this, Dougie crushed the cigarette under the heel of one of his boots, with his hands stowed carefully in his pockets. He eventually sniffed loudly, but mumbled something incoherent.

"What was that?"

"It was my fault! All of this shit was my stupid fault for running around like an idiot! I was just so… happy."

Dougie looked up for some sign of understanding from Tom, and he got a nod in response. "I remember, Doug. Now, come in and have a drink."

Finally, some semblance of a grin formed on Dougie's face. "Are you sure that's a good idea?"

"Fuck it; I think we all need to get smashed."

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

With the exception of the initial greeting between Danny and Dougie, the evening passed with minimal awkwardness and maximum love. The drinks flowed, and with each passing minute the ex-McFly guys became closer and closer; and they realised that really, they simply couldn't do without each other. The inevitable topic of the band came up in conversation, but Tom flapped a hand dismissively, and demanded that the others didn't discuss it, in case it put a downer on the night.

"Tom, dude, you've changed," Dougie remarked, with a nod in the blond's direction. "I'm glad you're more laid back now though; the other Tom was tiresome."

In response, the man in question slopped most of his pint down his front. "The other Tom was a stressed band member with a poker shoved up his arse."

Danny snorted, and Harry very nearly choked on a mouthful of beer.

"Oh, come on. We all know it's true," Tom insisted. "That's why none of you have denied it, already."

The rest of the guys sort of nodded in half-agreement, but none of them wanted to actually confirm Tom's suspicions out loud. The pause in conversation seemed to swell into an awkward silence, and it seemed that all four of the men were contemplating a specific question that, once again, nobody wanted to ask.

Finally, Dougie swallowed hard. "So. What do we do now?"

The other three ex-bandmates knew that he was not referring to this night in the pub, but to their lives in general. This, unsurprisingly, was a much scarier topic. Danny stared at the table, feeling ashamed; he pretended there was a particularly interesting knot in the wood.

"Whatever the fuck we want. Right? Guys, we have more money than we know what to do with. We can start over. Do those things we've always wanted to do." Tom stared at them all individually; his face now the picture of sobriety. "What's stopping us?"

"The fans."

Harry had a point; how could they possibly just let down the millions of fans, all over the world, because of a selfish desire to just quit? Harry felt sick at the thought.

Danny stayed silent throughout the exchange. Though he was part of the band, he really didn't feel that it was his place to be making any decisions; after all, this was his fault.

"I'll just leave."

"What?"

Danny sighed. "Come on; it's the most logical option. I'm the one with the issues, right? You guys just carry on, and I'll just… Well, I don't know yet."

Tom looked as if he might punch him. "Don't be so ridiculous, Danny. Don't you EVER say that to us again! Without you, there is no McFly. Same goes for any of us. Everyone agreed?"

Dougie and Harry nodded in silence.

"Now. Enough of this. Who's up for shots?"

/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\

It was fair to say that, when the boys left the pub at 2A.M. after a successful lock-in, they were smashed. Danny had forgotten each and every one of his worries, and it seemed that the same could be said for his ex-bandmates too. No matter what happened to them now, they would always stay the best of friends. After all, how could they not?

Tom held on to Harry for dear life, and was telling him a very exciting story. Or, so it seemed to him, but Harry was not really paying attention; he was trying his hardest not to be sick. This meant that Danny and Dougie were left ambling behind, still very drunk, but sober enough to notice the awkwardness.

"You don't want to race me this time?" Danny asked, smiling just enough to make it seem cheeky.

Dougie couldn't help but grin. "No, no. I'd rather not go through all that shit again. It could be me this time!"

For a while, the only noise made was from slow footsteps, and the occasional scratching of feet on gravel. It wasn't a particularly cold night, especially with the added insulation of an alcohol coat, but Danny could still see wisps of breath fly in front of him. If only his memories could be that easy to see. Like his breath though, he couldn't hold them in his hands, even if they were.

"Why me, Dougie? Why _us_? We had it all."

Dougie sighed at the ground, then returned his gaze to his friend. He had a pitiful, sad sort of smile on his face. "You know, I ask myself that same question every day. I still haven't come up with an answer, though."

"I wish I could just start over. Pretend like this stupid thing never happened. That can't happen though, right?"

With a smirk, Dougie replied, "Why not? We're already back at square one."

"What do you..?" But when Danny looked around, he found himself staring at the same crossing from all that time ago. Well, it felt like years, but in reality, only a couple of months had passed. Danny shivered, as if he were standing at the scene of a particularly horrific nightmare.

"Why did we come this way?" He asked finally, not being able to look at the place for more than a few seconds.

"Because I had an idea; it's mad, but it might work."

Dougie shifted closer by only a couple of baby steps, but Danny began to understand. Still feeling mildly dizzy, he took the younger man's hand and turned him so they were fully facing each other. "We tried this before."

"I know, but, not here. Just relax, okay?"

"Dougie, I…"

But his friend had already pressed his lips against Danny's; softly, tentatively. When he felt no rejection, he slipped a sly tongue into the brunet's mouth, waiting for a negative reaction.

As Danny tasted the bittersweet mix of Jack Daniels and… well… Dougie, his mind exploded. Flashes of colour, feeling and pain swept through an already troubled brain, and the result was a splitting headache. Instead of backing off though, he responded with fervour; knowing that the longer he stayed like this, the sooner the pain would go away. Danny slipped both hands around the waist of the younger man and pulled him closer, closer than he thought possible.

"Danny!"

"Shut up, Doug…" the older man growled.

This fell on deaf ears, though, as Dougie pulled away. He touched the brunet's scrunched face lightly. "Are you hurting?"

With slightly more aggression than necessary, Danny reeled Dougie back in for another incredible kiss. "No… I just need you. It feels like it's been so long…"

Realisation dawned visibly on Dougie's face, and he stroked the older man's cheek gently with the back of his hand. His eyes filled with tears as he understood, and saw the light that had been missing for all this time. It was Danny. Not just any Danny though; _his_ Danny.

"… It's really you. I mean… it worked!"

Danny smiled softly through the throbbing pain in his head. "Of course it's me, you numpty. Who else would it be?"

With a cry, Dougie launched both arms around his older friend's neck. "I love you so much."

Doing his best not to cry as he inhaled the gorgeous scent of Dougie, Danny gripped firmly on a tiny waist and nuzzled deeper into his neck. His response was muffled and slightly croaky, but that didn't matter a bit.

"I love you too."

Succumbing to the tears, Danny threw his head back and laughed into the stars until they just became a blurry mess. The only clarity was Dougie, and there was no way he was ever letting him go again.


End file.
